Businessman abducted in Sulu

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines—A group of seven armed men snatched a hardware store owner near his home in Christian Village housing subdivision in the town of Patikul in Sulu late Tuesday afternoon, the police reported Wednesday.

Chief Inspector Conrad Gutierrez, spokesman of the Sulu provincial police command, said John Archie Hablo Jr., 29,  owner of Sincere Hardware Enterprises in the Walled City section of Jolo, the provincial capital, was on a motorcycle with his brother Jarold Miko riding tandem when they were waylaid near their home by unidentified men in a jeepney.

“The unidentified perpetrators forcibly grabbed Archie while his brother managed to flee and reported the incident to the police,” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez said the police were still in a search-and-pursuit operation although neither victim nor perpetrators had been sighted as of Wednesday morning. The abductors have not communicated with the family either, he added.

Sulu is considered the lair of the Abu Sayyaf, which has gained notoriety through kidnapping of both locals and foreigners. However, Gutierrez said the police could not as yet say if Hablo’s kidnappers belong to the bandit group.