Surgeon’s kidnappers demand P2-M ransom

BATANGAS — The kidnappers of a heart surgeon and feedmill owner have reportedly demanded a P2-million ransom in exchange for his freedom, sources said.

This appears to be a new twist in the abduction of Dr. Arturo Boa who was initially believed to have been snatched by New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas to treat their sick and wounded comrades.

"The possibility that the NPA had something to do with the (abduction) is lessened but we will not discount it as a possible angle," one of the sources said.

Sources said the kidnappers called up Boa’s wife Aida last Sunday and initially asked for a P8-million ransom which they later reduced to P2 million.

The kidnappers, the sources said, might have presented themselves as NPA rebels to mislead investigators.

Earlier, reports said the Boa couple had offered money to the abductors who, in turn, refused it, claiming that they merely needed the doctor’s services.

The surgeon and his wife had come from their poultry farm when armed men blocked their path and commandeered their vehicle last Friday afternoon. Mrs. Boa was later freed.

Other reports claimed that the group behind the Boa abduction could be a new one trying its hand in kidnapping for ransom.

"They (the kidnappers) are soft-spoken and courteous," one of the sources quoted Mrs. Boa as saying.

The abduction is the second in Batangas this month. Last Jan. 7, businessman Chan Lin Loy, 37, was seized near the warehouse he was renting in Rosario town.

Police still have no clues on the Chan case because the trader’s family has refused to cooperate with authorities.

At Malacañang, meanwhile, President Arroyo instructed Philippine National Police chief Director General Leandro Mendoza to "personally see to it that no harm (befalls)" kidnap victim Jacqui Rowena Tiu and her family.

Tiu, 29, met with Mrs. Arroyo at Malacañang yesterday. She was accompanied by her father Rodolfo, Teresita Ang-See of the Citizens Against Crime and Corruption and Joaquin Sy, secretary-general of the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc.

Tiu told reporters before the meeting that she sought an audience with the President to seek help because she and her family have been receiving death threats.

Tiu was abducted in San Fernando City, La Union last September by an international kidnap-for-ransom syndicate composed of Chinese nationals.

Police arrested seven suspects and recovered the P10-million ransom during an operation at the Philippine Plaza Hotel.

The Tius earlier criticized the alleged meddling by the Chinese Embassy in the case, resulting in the charges against two of the suspects being downgraded to mere accessories to the crime.

After the meeting, the President said she also ordered Justice Secretary Hernando Perez to personally see to it that state prosecutors will "relentlessly pursue" the Tiu case.

"No stone should be left unturned in running after the ones who continue to harass and threaten the (Tiu) family," she said.