The military is suspecting the Abu Sayyaf kidnap and terror group as behind the abduction of a British businessman and his Filipino wife in Tukuran, Zamboanga del Sur last Friday.
“The group that most likely took them is the Abu Sayyaf, a kidnap-for-ransom group,” said Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, head of the Western Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Allan and Wilma Hyrons were said to have been kidnapped by six suspects from their resort in Alindahaw village, using a motorboat.
“Only one group conducts kidnapping in the area–the Abu Sayyaf,” said Sobejana.
The military is also looking at a connection with the Sept. 20 dismissal of five teachers from the school owned by the couple, Hyrons College Philippines.
“They dismissed five teachers so we’re investigating if that is related to the kidnapping…We’re not discounting the possibility it’s related to the dismissal of the teachers. Their (dismissed teachers) families may be retaliating,” he said.
No group has come forward to demand ransom, however, Sobejana said.
The military believes the kidnap victims are still in Zamboanga del Sur. “It appears they’ve yet to proceed to Basilan or Sulu,” Sobejana said. (PressONE.ph)