MANILA – An elite team from the Philippine National Police (PNP) killed six suspected members of a kidnap-for-ransom syndicate in their rescue of a Taiwanese businesswoman who was abducted in Bulacan province in Central Luzon, a PNP spokesman reported.
The spokesman said the suspects were slain in running gunbattles with members of the PNP Police Anti-Crime Emergency Response (Pacer) team that started from San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan through suburban Valenzuela City and ended finally in Manila, both in Metro Manila.
He added the slain suspects were believed to be former soldiers who belonged to the “Waray Waray†criminal syndicate that has been involved in several bank robberies and kidnapping especially of Filipino-Chinese and foreign businessmen in Metro Manila and neighboring areas.
The encounter, the spokesman said, occurred in the rescue of a Taiwanese businesswoman , identified as Margaret Kao, who was abducted Thursday night in a “barangay†(village) in suburban Quezon City, Metro Manila.
Following the abduction, the spokesman said the suspects brought Kao to their safehouse in San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan where they negotiated with her family for her release upon payment of their ransom demand equivalent to $6 million in cash.
He said that after paying the ransom, Kao’s family sought the aid of the Pacer team when the suspects failed to fulfill their promise to release Kao.
Using their network of informants, the spokesman said the Pacer team succeeded in pinpointing the safehouse where Kao was being held hostage.
With the aid of military intelligence agents, he said the Pacer team raided the place to rescue Kao as the suspects fled aboard their getaway vehicles, a van and a car owned by the victim late Thursday night.
But the spokesman said the lawmen managed to tail the suspects who fled toward Valenzuela where they rammed through a checkpoint which was established following radioed information they were heading toward that direction.
This resulted in a running gunbattle until three of the suspects aboard the van were cornered along the national highway. But instead of heeding the order to surrender, the suspects decided to shoot it out with their pursuers, resulting in their death, the spokesman said.]
He disclosed that the Pacer team recovered from the van the $6 million ransom money which was kept intact inside two plastic bags as well as handguns of different calibers and assorted ammunition.
Meanwhile, the spokesman said the three others aboard the car succeeded in eluding the lawmen and were last seen heading toward Manila.
But through close coordination and teamwork, the Manila police spread a dragnet and found the suspects crossing a bridge and bound for the Port Area in the city shortly before 2 a.m. on Friday, according to the spokesman.
He added that with the suspects apparently determined to evade capture, they ignored warnings and instead fired at the policemen who launched a hot pursuit and shot back at them.
After a 10-minute running gunbattle, the spokesman said the policemen cornered the suspects in a dimly lighted area at the historic Intramuros (or walled city) built by the Spanish colonizers where the suspects made their last stand until they were killed.
He said the getaway vehicle used by the suspects and at least two police cars were peppered with bullets.
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