No demand yet from kidnappers of private contractor’s son in Lanao Norte

LINAMON, Lanao del Norte – An armed group holding captive the son of an Ozamiz City-based private contractor has not made any demand, two weeks after abducting the victim from Samburon village here, a military official said Thursday.

But Colonel Daniel Lucero, commander of the 103rd Infantry Brigade based in nearby Lanao del Sur, said even if the kidnappers had made known their demand, the government would never negotiate with criminals.

Lucero also said that based on information reaching the military, Alexander Lim, whose family owns DL Construction, was being kept in the hinterlands of this province since being abducted on June 8.

“He is alive,” Lucero told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Lucero said soldiers were working side by side with the police to determine the location of the kidnappers and rescue the victim.

He said the setback was that civilians in areas suspected to be the lair of the gunmen refused to cooperate.

“They are afraid of the repercussions if they provided us information,” Lucero said.

He said the military was now relying on the information provided by the sole informer, who he only identified as “Amai Pakpak.”

“The tipster has been giving us information through text messages and we were closing in on our targets,” Lucero said.

Governor Mohammad Khalid Dimaporo said the safety of the victim should be the priority of the military and the police.

Lim and two other workers were to visit a road project being undertaken by his family’s company in Samburon village when seized at gunpoint. His companions, Engineer Henry Alumbro and driver Edgar Gomez, were later released in Balo-i town.

The company’s Toyota Fortuner, which the armed men had commandeered, was recovered in Marawi City. The gunmen had burned the vehicle before leaving it behind.