Trader’s abductors demand P10-M

COTABATO CITY — Kidnappers have demanded a P10-million ransom in exchange for the release of a Chinese-Filipino car dealer snatched here last Monday.

But the relatives of kidnap victim Norman Sia, 24, said they could not afford to raise such an amount, adding that Sia was just an ordinary car agent who earned minimal commissions from his deals.

Text messages have been circulating here and in nearby Tacurong City saying that the notorious Pentagon kidnapping syndicate was behind Sia’s abduction and that he was being held captive somewhere at the boundary of Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat.

Cotabato City Mayor Muslimin Sema confirmed that Sia’s abductors had, indeed, contacted his family.

Sia was snatched Monday afternoon by three men who posed as car buyers while they were road-testing a Kia Pride he was selling to them.