Probe can wait as freed kidnap victim resting

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Mayor Celso Lobregat said authorities are allowing freed kidnap victim Gerfa Lunsmann to rest before extracting pieces of information from her that could lead to the release of her son, Kevin, and another relative who remain in captivity.

The mayor said officials are waiting for Lunsmann to recover to get “a clearer picture” that could help authorities plan their next move.

Lunsmann was flown to Manila immediately after she was presented to media here on Monday.

“She needs more time to rest and recover,” said Lobregat. “I remember asking her some questions during her visit to my office and she had a hard time answering,” the mayor said.

He said “it will take days before we can get whatever information she has to help us.”

Lunsmann, her son Kevin and Romnick Jakaria, a distant relative, were snatched in Tigtabon Island in this city on July 12. Gerfa was a Filipino adopted by an American couple when she was a child. She returned here to trace her roots and bought a parcel of land in Tigtabon Island where she was planning to build a vacation house.

Senior Supt. Edwin de Ocampo, acting city police chief, quoted Lunsmann as saying her son was in good condition.

De Ocampo admitted Jakaria was earlier considered a suspect, but with the release of Lunsmann, “it is now clear that he is a kidnap victim.” Julie S. Alipala, Inquirer Mindanao