Dennis Roldan negotiated for release of kidnap victim

A prosecution witness testified that actor and former Quezon City congressman Dennis Roldan negotiated with the parents of a kidnapped three-year-old boy for the victim’s release for millions of pesos in ransom.

The witness, Anthony Luen Fernandez, an official from the Smart Telecommunications, was able to open the SIM card of the cellphone recovered in the possession of Roldan which revealed text messages from the boy’s mother, Jenny Yu, pleading to the abductors to accept the family’s offer of P2,639,500 because they cannot raise the P200 million demanded from them.

Roldan (Mitchell Gumabao in real life) is the principal accused in the kidnapping of Kenshi Yu in Feb. 9, 2005.

Fernandez revealed the incriminating evidence against Roldan and co-accused during the continuation of the hearing before the sala of Judge Rodolfo Bonifacio on Nov. 27.

Teresita Ang See, of the Movement for the Restoration of Peace and Order and Citizen’s Action Against Crime was able to get hold of a transcript of the hearing, a copy of which was obtained by The Star.

Fernandez told the court that he was able to retrieve six text messages from the SIM card of the cellphone number 0928-6100840, which was presented in the previous hearing as one of the three numbers used by Yu’s kidnappers.

One of the messages reads, “Maawa po kayo nakikiusap ko ako pakawalan n’yo anak ko kunin n’yo na ito naipon namin hindi na namin kaya. Ayaw magpadala po asawa ko sa ospital para di mabawasan pera kunin n’yo na po P2,639,500.” The senders’ number is 0917-8148866, Jenny’s mobile phone.

The SIM card was taken from Roldan, which was confiscated from him at the time of his arrest in Quezon City.

Roldan’s counsel tried to block the admission of the SIM card as evidence claiming that it was a product of an illegal arrest.

However, the problem was settled in 2005 when the judge, at the time, argued that Roldan’s arrest was legal.

State prosecutor Irwin Maraya presented Fernandez before the court in a bid to open the SIM card. Using a Smart Amazing phone, Fernandez opened the SIM card, which was not used since Roldan’s arrest in 2005, and retrieved the messages and phone numbers embedded in it.

In a previous hearing, Jenny revealed that very few people knew about her mobile phone number, which the kidnapper called, because it was purchased a few weeks before the kidnapping.

Among those accused with Roldan was Suzette Wang, Gumabao’s alleged girlfriend and Jenny’s friend since their kindergarten days. Wang is at large and a reward of P300,000 was offered for information leading to her capture.

Gumabao was granted bail by then Judge Agnes Carpio, who later inhibited herself from the case as prayed for by the prosecution.