Cover image via The Star Online
Gunmen reportedly demands large ransoms for kidnap victims, but families have yet to report to the police
Image via The Malay Mail Online
Police Commissioner Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman also said that the kidnapping, believed to have been orchestrated by the Muktadil brothers, may have been carried out with some help from "insiders"
Image via The Malay Mail Online
15 May: Two people were kidnapped from a famous seafood restaurant in Sandakan when four armed assailants raided the restaurant sometime between 7.30pm to 8.00pm last night
Image via The Star Online
Ocean King Seafood restaurant owner Chung Yun Thiam, 60, identified one of them as 50-year-old Thien Nyuk Fun, who is also his sister-in-law. The other victim is a customer named Bernard Ghen Ted Fen, 36.
Chung said that the gunmen, who were armed and clad in camouflaged army uniform, had "climbed up the staircase of the restaurant that was built on water". He and his workers managed to escape from the kidnappers during the raid, which lasted not more than a minute.
The gunmen, believed to be linked to the militant Islamist group Abu Sayyaf operating in South Phillippines, were reported to have arrived by boat. Chung noted that they were not wearing masks nor did they shot anyone. They also left the restaurant's cash box untouched.
"They wore no mask and there was no shooting," Chung said, adding that the abductors were not even bothered with money since they left without even taking any from the cash box at the counter.
"I overheard one of the customers saying that at least two more people were seen waiting in the boat. They were saying that that the boat was rather old," Chung said.
"After lodging a police report, I don't know what else to do. I guess I have to wait by the phone in case the abductors call for ransom," added Chung.
Security forces were immediately deployed to track down the kidnappers and victims, as Sandakan is only about an hour's ride on speedboat from the southern Philippines island Bakungan Besar.
Image via The Rakyat Post
