ZAMBOANGA CITY ? Police recovered a businessman, who went missing in January, during a raid on the house of a prominent lawyer in Barangay Upper Calarian here Tuesday.

The lawyer, Hassan Alam, was also arrested along with several other persons ? including two police officers ? during the 9:10 a.m. raid, according to acting city police chief Senior Supt. Mario Yanga.
Yanga said they received information two weeks ago that 55-year-old Eliseo Jablo was being hidden in Alam?s house.

?We carefully planned out the raid so we can ensure the safe recovery of the captive,? he said.

Aside from Alam, who is also an official of the Association of Barter Traders here, Yanga identified the other suspects as P02 Alwin Abdua of the Traffic Management Group; P01 Marshall Lim of the city police force; Grace Mabaton Gonzales, 35; Joel Enriquez, 51; Jarmon Juban, 23; Saturnino Gracia, and Joel Mabaton, 33.

Jablo, a franchisee of Julie?s Bakeshop here, went missing Jan. 8.
The businessman failed to return home after work.

His Starex van was later recovered in Barangay San Roque.

Even as Jablo failed to show up after several weeks, authorities refused to say it was a kidnapping.

It was only on Tuesday that Yanga finally admitted that Jablo was indeed kidnapped by the suspects.

He said Alam?s group demanded P20 million in ransom from Jablo?s family.

But Yanga said no money changed hands.

?Due to the successful rescue mission, the kidnappers were not able to get the ransom,? he said.

Yanga said Jablo was not treated well by his captors, based on the way he looked when they found him.

?Toto Jablo?s hands were handcuffed, his ears stuffed with cotton balls,? he said.

Yanga said Alam even made sure that Jablo could not escape by guarding the businessman himself.

Mayor Celso Lobregat said Jablo looked frail and ill.
?Apparently, he was not well fed,? he said.

Meanwhile, the fate of the three teachers of Landang Gua abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen on January remained uncertain to this day.
The Abu Sayyaf was asking P6 million for the three teachers, who were brought to Basilan.

Councilor Charlie Mariano said the spate of kidnappings here obviously made the city the kidnapping capital of the county.

Mariano said based on his personal research, at least 30 persons in Zamboanga City had already been victimized by kidnap groups since last year.

?Some of the rich families immediately pay and prefer to keep the incident to themselves for fear of reprisal,? he said.
Mariano?s statement on some unreported kidnapping cases was confirmed when the Basilan police said it rescued a Zamboanga City woman.

Senior Supt. Salik Macapantar, Basilan police chief, said Katrina Mari Casipong was handed over to a civilian official of Barangay Tanggung in Muhamad Adjul town on Jan. 19.

?She was released to Barangay Capt. Dasirin Wahid, who turned her over to the Marines,? Macapantar said.

He said Wahid paid P9,000 to the kidnappers, who were identified as Arman Salambang, Potoh Uruk and Alimaun Patah.

But the city police said it had no record of a kidnapping case involving Casipong.