Ransom sought for release of abducted Tawi-tawi teacher

By Ronron
January 30, 2008

The group of armed men that could include Abu Sayyaf elements had asked money and some goods from the family of a teacher they abducted last January 15 after killing a Catholic priest in a school in Tawi-tawi province, police said Wednesday.

Sr. Supt. Wainwright Taup, police director of Tawi-tawi, said the family of Omar Taup had been receiving ransom demand from the latter’s abductors since last week, the highest amount was P1 million.

“The abductors had called and written the family of Omar Taup. They and even Taup particularly called the latter’s brother-in-law,” the police officer said in a phone interview.

“They initially demanded P1 million but the family attempted to reduce it to P100,000 because they said they don’t have money,” he went on.

Taup said he only learned last Tuesday of the communication made by the abductors after the victim’s family sought the help of police.

Aside from the P1 million demand, the abductors also asked for coffee, cellphone batteries and flashlight, among others, from the victim’s family. But the family has yet to give in to any of those demands, said Taup.

Taup said the victim had talked himself to his brother-in-law in one of the mobile phone conversations last week, wherein he assured he is “in good health” and was not being maltreated.

Taup said the abductors did not mention any deadlines for their demand, as well as what would be done to their hostage if the demand is not granted.

“These demands are just like accommodation fee of their hostage,” Taup said.

Having received the report now about the ransom demand, Taup said they will take advantage of the contact established with the abductors by the victim’s families.

But he stressed that they will comply with the government’s no-ransom policy in this incident.

“We will try our best to really get the victim and apprehend the abductors,” Taup said.

Latest information reaching him reveals that the suspects are allegedly in Sulu already. “I received information that they could already be in Jolo so we are now coordinating with the police and military there to verify this information,” Taup said.

The victim was taken by around 10 men who barged into the Notre Dame campus in Barangay Tabawan, South Ubian town in Tawi-tawi on the night of January 15. It is believed that he was used as a shield as the suspects escape after killing Fr. Rey Roda, the director of said school.

Roda of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate congregation was brutally killed by the suspects after allegedly refusing to go with them./DMS