Charges filed vs 5 suspects in Fil-Am boy's kidnap

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Justice has filed kidnapping charges against five men who seized a four-year-old Filipino-American boy in Manila and held him captive for eight days in Sorsogon.

The five suspects were arrested when police stormed their hideout in Prieto Diaz town in Sorsogon on Wednesday.

The kidnapping was the second recent case of a kidnapped Filipino-American minor in the country.

The boy, who was living with his Filipino mother and American father, was seized in Manila last Dec. 6 by three armed men who cut off the car he was traveling in with his mother, said Isagani Nerez, head of the police anti-crime unit.

Police said the kidnappers initially demanded P10-million ransom. After haggling with the boy’s family, they reduced the amount to P5 million and later to P600,000, which was paid on Dec. 9.

The kidnappers, however, did not release the boy and instead asked for an additional P5 million, police said.

The boy’s father, an engineer, sought the help of the US embassy and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which sent representatives to the national police headquarters to coordinate with local authorities in securing the boy’s release, Nerez said.

He said police feared the boy would be harmed and traced his location to the kidnappers’ hideout in Prieto Diaz town.

On Wednesday, police stormed the site, rescued the boy, who was unharmed, and arrested three of his alleged captors. A follow-up operation led to the separate arrests of two more suspects in Parañaque City and Muntinlupa City the following day.

The five suspects were identified as Lorenzo Dipad, Michael Yolol, Floridel Yolol, Jaymark Lopena, and Ramil Lopena.

“We were worried that the kidnappers would kill the boy if their demand was not met,” Nerez said. “It was the reason why we decided to launch the assault on the kidnappers’ lair.”

After a medical checkup found the boy to be in good health, he was reunited with his family, Nerez said.

The boy’s identity was withheld because of privacy concerns. Nerez said he was attending an international school in a Manila suburb.

US embassy spokeswoman Betina Malone said US authorities were appreciative of the efforts of Philippine police in rescuing the boy.

“It was the result of a great deal of hard work,” she said, adding that US authorities expected those responsible to be prosecuted and punished.

The five suspects are being held in police detention pending trial. If convicted, they face up to 40 years in prison.

“They are new faces,” Nerez said, adding that the suspects have not been previously linked to kidnappings.

He said they could be linked to the New People’s Army, which has a strong presence in Sorsogon.

Last week, 14-year-old Filipino-American Kevin Lunsmann escaped from suspected al-Qaeda-linked militants in Basilan after five months in jungle captivity. His Filipino mother was freed two months ago, and their cousin escaped last month.