Kidnapped Malaysian national escaped from Sayyaf, but another hostage dies in captivity

From the Mindanao Examiner blog (Aug 6): Kidnapped Malaysian national escaped from Sayyaf, but another hostage dies in captivity



Google map of the area in Indanan town in Sulu province where kidnapped Malaysian national Chong Wei Jie is recovered by a patrolling policeman on August 6, 2013. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine authorities said a Malaysian national kidnapped last year in the eastern state of Sabah had escaped Tuesday from his Abu Sayyaf captors in the southern Filipino province of Sulu.

Police said Chong Wei Jie, 25, was spotted by a policeman, Baltazar Sawadi walking alone in the village of Pasil in Indanan town and brought him to the headquarters where he was fed and interviewed by authorities.

Chong told police investigators that his cousin Chong Wei Fei, 33, died in captivity from a lingering illness and that he alone escaped from his kidnappers.

“SPO1 Baltazar Sawadi, who was patrolling the village, spotted the man who turned out to be one of two Malaysian nationals kidnapped in Sabah. He said he escaped from his captors, but his cousin died in captivity,” Senior Superintendent Abraham Orbita, the provincial police chief, told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

No other details were made available by the police and the Malaysian embassy and the Filipino government have not issued any statement about Chong’s daring escape.

It was also unknown whether Chong was telling the truth or not, but his sweet freedom came just recently after Malaysian police said it wanted to establish contact with the kidnappers to pave way for negotiations for the safe release of the victims.

The statement came after their captors sent a photo of the duo taken in March 7 to the Malaysian newspaper The Star.

The two cousins, managers of a palm plantation in Lahad Datu town, were kidnapped in November 13 by five gunmen disguised as Malaysian policemen and dragged them to a waiting speed boat and sped towards the southern Philippines.

Sabah Police Commissioner Hamza Taib was quoted by Malaysia Chronicle as saying that they wanted to re-establish contact with the kidnappers.

Ransom negotiations for the safe release of the hostages were disrupted by the intrusion in February of Sulu Sultanate forces in Lahad Datu which eventually ended in a fierce battle that left dozens of people dead and wounded.

The Abu Sayyaf is still holding several foreigners and Filipino captives in the southern region. And Manila has not released any progress reports on the Abu Sayyaf hostages.

In 2010, suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen also kidnapped two Malaysian seaweed farmers - Vui Chung, 42, and Lai Wing Chau, 33 – in a daring raid on Semporna near Lahad Datu and brought them to Tawi-Tawi where they had been ransomed off for two million ringgits.

And on 2001, the Abu Sayyaf raided the island-resort of Sipadan and seized 21 mostly Western holidaymakers and ransomed them off to Malaysia and Libya for millions of dollars.

 http://mindanaoexaminer.blogspot.com/2013/08/kidnapped-malaysian-national-escaped.html