3 kidnap victims: 2 rescued, 1 escapes

At least three persons were kidnapped over the past week, police said yesterday.

Two of the victims were rescued while one was able to escape.

The Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG), headed by Chief Superintendent Glenn Dumlao, rescued Colegio de San Juan de Letran student Denzhel Gomez and arrested three of his classmates and a College of Saint Benilde (CSB) student for allegedly kidnapping him last week.

During a press conference at Camp Crame yesterday, Philippine National Police chief Director General Oscar Albayalde described arrested suspects Jhulius Atabay, Ferdinand dela Vega Jr., Ralph Emmanuel Camaya and CSB student Justine Mahipus as “young… with criminal minds.” 

The AKG is also investigating the alleged involvement of Eriek Candaba, Arvi Velasquez, Gabriel Rabi, Miguel Austria, Billy Rocillo and Kim Pascua. All of them  are Letran students except for Velasquez, who was reported to be studying at a flying school in Parañaque.

The suspects are reportedly all of legal age, Dumlao said during the press conference.

The AKG chief said Gomez was rescued from a safehouse in Tondo, Manila on Aug. 3, two days after he was snatched by six armed men in a Toyota Innova while he and Atabay were waiting for a bus ride near the Light Rail Transit’s Central station at around 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 1.

The kidnappers released Atabay, who claimed he received a phone call using Gomez’s cell phone number and the caller demanded P30 million as ransom.

Upon being interrogated by the AKG, Atabay admitted he knew where Gomez was being held, Dumlao said.

The arrested suspects, who reportedly pointed to Atabay as the mastermind, were charged with kidnapping for ransom and serious illegal detention before the Department of Justice.

Abducted while drunk

On Sunday, police rescued a 16-year-old girl who was allegedly abducted in Quezon City when she got drunk at a bar.

The girl was found in a hotel in Barangay Balintawak at past 8 a.m.

Superintendent Louise Benjie Tremor, Kamuning police Station 10 commander, said the victim herself sent her mother a text message that she was brought to the hotel by her kidnapper at around 5:20 a.m.

A police manhunt is underway for the suspect, a certain Christian, allegedly a relative of the owner of Oasis Bar, where the girl was kidnapped at around 3:40 a.m.

Based on an initial investigation, the girl, her mother and their relatives and friends attended a farewell party at the bar for a cousin leaving for abroad.

The girl got drunk and was snoozing just outside the bar. Her mother asked the suspect’s help to bring her back inside but he said he could not do it alone.

When her mother went back into the bar to get more people to help, the suspect hailed a taxi and boarded the vehicle with the girl, a witness said.

The girl’s mother received the text message just as she was giving her statement at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit at Camp Karingal.

The suspect was nowhere to be found when policemen arrived at the hotel. The girl was brought to the Quezon City Crime Laboratory for examination to determine if she was sexually abused.

Namesake

Meanwhile, a namesake of former president and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada escaped from his captors, who were arrested by the AKG on Friday.

Police said Estrada was taken by suspects Christian Rueda and Jiovanni Ojeda along Diamond street in Ramer Village, Quezon City at around 2 a.m. on July 26.

On the same day, the victim’s sister received a phone call from him begging her to send P300,000 to pay his debt. On July 30, the victim managed to escape when his captors brought him to a bank to withdraw from an automated teller machine.

Estrada went to the AKG on Aug. 3 after the suspects threatened to kill him and his family if he does not give them P500,000.

The AKG operatives set up a sting in Taguig City and arrested the suspects.

Dumlao said Rueda and Ojeda were also linked to a murder and car theft case in Tagaytay City on July 31 as well as an extortion case.