Senior Supt. Albert Larubis, Isabela City police chief, said Dina Lim Iraham, 45, and her daughter by first her marriage, Yahong Lim Tan, 19, were snatched a day after the authorities held a peace and order meeting.
Larubis said the mother married a local 10 years ago after arriving from China with her daughter by her first husband.
He said despite being married to a Filipino, Iraham remained a Chinese citizen along with her daughter.
“They are pure Chinese even if Dina was married to a Filipino. She came here with her daughter from her first marriage,” Larubis said.
He said the mother and daughter were inside the family-owned videoke bar on Magno Extension when they were snatched at gunpoint around 9:30 p.m.
“The victims struggled as they were being made to board a water craft,” Larubis said, citing witness accounts.
He said the police suspected that the group responsible for the abduction was that led by Puruji Indama and Nurhassan Jamiri.
Indama’s group, which has been blamed for most kidnappings in Basilan, was the object of a massive military operation last month.
At least seven persons—five Abu Sayyaf gunmen and two soldiers — were killed in one of the clashes.
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