ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines – Government troops thwarted the kidnapping of three public school teachers by five armed men on an island village east of this city on Thursday, the military said.
Col. Buenaventura Pascual, commander of Task Force Zamboanga, said the kidnappers armed with caliber .45 pistols barged into the Limaong Elementary School and seized the three female teachers at around 3:45 p.m. Thursday.
Pascual identified the would-be kidnap victims as Riza de la Cruz, Lee Ma-riano, and Lerna Cabilis.
However, elements of the 1st Zamboanga City CAFGU Active Auxiliary under Task Force Zamboanga and members of the Civilian Volunteer Organization who were conducting security patrol at the time responded and caught up with the kidnappers.
“The troopers fired at the kidnappers, prompting them to abort their plan and escape toward the shoreline, leaving their would-be kidnap victims unharmed,” Pascual said.
The public school teachers were recovered and brought to the militiamen’s detachment while a pursuit operation was launched against the armed men who fled toward the nearby island of Tigburacao.
Pascual said security has been intensified on the island and other coastal villages following the recent kidnapping of an Australian national in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay, which is just adjacent to this city.
Pascual said security has been stepped up, too, in different schools in island barangays which kidnapping groups could target. – With Jaime Laude