Members of the Philippine Coast Guard’s anti-terrorism unit board a high-speed boat in the southern Philippine province of Zamboanga to search for kidnapped British businessman Allan Arthur Hyrons and his wife, Wilma Paglinawan, Oct. 17, 2019. BenarNews
The gunmen who abducted a British national and his Filipina wife have demanded 50 million pesos (almost U.S. $1 million) in exchange for their freedom, a Philippine military official said Thursday.
This came as the Philippine Coast Guard announced it had deployed its anti-terror unit and a high-speed boat to beef up the military’s search-and-rescue mission in the porous coastlines of the Zamboanga peninsula in the southern Philippines.
The ransom demand was relayed to the relatives of Allan Arthur Hyrons, 70, who was snatched by armed men at a beach resort in Zamboanga del Sur province two weeks ago along with his wife, Wilma Paglinawan, regional military chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana told reporters.
“There were groups relaying the demand to the family (of the victims) amounting to 50 million pesos,” Sobejana said, adding that the information was intercepted by intelligence operatives.
However, Sobejana said they were taking the information at face value, noting that many militant groups were in the south and could be taking advantage of the confusing situation.
Sobejana said the abductors and their captives are believed to be hiding in the vicinity of Zamboanga peninsula, where troops have fanned out to locate them.
No one has claimed responsibility for the abduction, although military officials had blamed the Islamic State-linked Abu Sayyaf militants for previous kidnappings in the region.
Malaysia: Kidnappers of Indonesian fisherman seek ransom
Meanwhile, the unidentified abductors of three Indonesian fishermen who were snatched off the Malaysian Borneo state of Sabah also demanded ransom, according to the Malaysian police.
Malaysian police earlier reported that seven armed men kidnapped Samiun Maniu, 27, Maharuydin Lunani, 48, and Muhammas Farhan, 27, from their fishing trawler last month. The kidnappers sped away in two pump boats with their hostages toward the Tawi-Tawi islets before heading toward Jolo island, a known stronghold of Abu Sayyaf militants, Malaysian authorities said.
Sabah Police Commissioner Omar Mammah said a man claiming to be one of the seven kidnappers made a telephone call to a family member of one of the Indonesians.
“The kidnappers called the family member of one of the fishermen a few days after the Sept. 23 kidnapping,” Omar told BenarNews early this month.
“Our Philippine counterpart, who gave us this information, however, did not tell us how much ransom was demanded,” he said. “The kidnappers demanded that the families resolve the matter by paying the ransom soonest possible.”
Malaysian newspapers have described Eastern Sabah as one of the most dangerous areas in the country in which piracy and kidnapping have taken place after the infamous Sipadan island kidnapping incident 19 years ago in which suspected Abu Sayyaf members snatched dozens of people, mostly tourists.
Citing intelligence information, Hazani Ghazali, chief of Malaysia’s Eastern Sabah Security Command, told BenarNews that the fishermen were being held in Indanan town in the southern Philippine province of Sulu.
“I can’t say who exactly the kidnappers were,” he said.
This came as the Philippine Coast Guard announced it had deployed its anti-terror unit and a high-speed boat to beef up the military’s search-and-rescue mission in the porous coastlines of the Zamboanga peninsula in the southern Philippines.
The ransom demand was relayed to the relatives of Allan Arthur Hyrons, 70, who was snatched by armed men at a beach resort in Zamboanga del Sur province two weeks ago along with his wife, Wilma Paglinawan, regional military chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana told reporters.
“There were groups relaying the demand to the family (of the victims) amounting to 50 million pesos,” Sobejana said, adding that the information was intercepted by intelligence operatives.
However, Sobejana said they were taking the information at face value, noting that many militant groups were in the south and could be taking advantage of the confusing situation.
Sobejana said the abductors and their captives are believed to be hiding in the vicinity of Zamboanga peninsula, where troops have fanned out to locate them.
No one has claimed responsibility for the abduction, although military officials had blamed the Islamic State-linked Abu Sayyaf militants for previous kidnappings in the region.
Malaysia: Kidnappers of Indonesian fisherman seek ransom
Meanwhile, the unidentified abductors of three Indonesian fishermen who were snatched off the Malaysian Borneo state of Sabah also demanded ransom, according to the Malaysian police.
Malaysian police earlier reported that seven armed men kidnapped Samiun Maniu, 27, Maharuydin Lunani, 48, and Muhammas Farhan, 27, from their fishing trawler last month. The kidnappers sped away in two pump boats with their hostages toward the Tawi-Tawi islets before heading toward Jolo island, a known stronghold of Abu Sayyaf militants, Malaysian authorities said.
Sabah Police Commissioner Omar Mammah said a man claiming to be one of the seven kidnappers made a telephone call to a family member of one of the Indonesians.
“The kidnappers called the family member of one of the fishermen a few days after the Sept. 23 kidnapping,” Omar told BenarNews early this month.
“Our Philippine counterpart, who gave us this information, however, did not tell us how much ransom was demanded,” he said. “The kidnappers demanded that the families resolve the matter by paying the ransom soonest possible.”
Malaysian newspapers have described Eastern Sabah as one of the most dangerous areas in the country in which piracy and kidnapping have taken place after the infamous Sipadan island kidnapping incident 19 years ago in which suspected Abu Sayyaf members snatched dozens of people, mostly tourists.
Citing intelligence information, Hazani Ghazali, chief of Malaysia’s Eastern Sabah Security Command, told BenarNews that the fishermen were being held in Indanan town in the southern Philippine province of Sulu.
“I can’t say who exactly the kidnappers were,” he said.
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