Teen jumps out of Manila-bound ship off Cebu City, is rescued

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A teenager forced a Manila-bound vessel to stop for more than an hour at sea after he jumped off the vessel on Tuesday afternoon.

But Glebon Jay Khobuntin, 18, from El Salvador, Cagayan de Oro City, was rescued by the crew of the MV St. Pope John Paul II of 2Go Travel at 3:12 p.m. in Bagacay Point in Liloan town, northern Cebu, said Cebu Coast Guard Station Commander Agapito Bibat.

Khobuntin was with a friend and a neighbor Alfredo Cresencio, 27. They are construction workers who  wanted to look for better jobs in Manila.

They boarded the St. Pope John Paul II vessel, which left Cagayan at 12:35 a.m. on Tuesday. The vessel had a stopover in Cebu at 8:50 a.m. and again left to continue its trip to Manila at 12:30 noon on Tuesday.

But at 2:15 p.m., Khobuntin reportedly ran and jumped off the vessel because “someone chased him and wanted to kill him.”

Commander Bibat said the passenger was able to swim and the vessel went back to rescue Khobuntin.

Bibat said that when the rescue personnel reached him, he attempted to swim farther away because of fear that someone would kill him.

Bibat said the vessel’s crew succeeded in bringing him back to the vessel and placed him inside a cabin while the vessel continued its trip to Manila. He was also guarded to ensure his safety.

Bibat said the young passenger could have been using drugs.  SFM