Kidnapping-Related Incidents – August 2022
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Most of the kidnapping incidents recorded in August 2022 were personal dispute-related. Out of the total number of kidnapping incidents this month, 10 incidents were personal dispute-related while one incident was POGO-related. Based on the recorded incidents, only one abduction in August demanded ransom money worth PHP 2 million (USD 35,199).
There have been 20 kidnap victims reported in August, seven of them were foreign victims – one Cambodian, one Malaysian, one Vietnamese, and four Chinese nationals. PSA recorded no kidnapping incidents targeting Western nationals this month. Based on the recorded incidents, two abductions occurred within Metro Manila, while the other incidents took place in the provinces of Batangas, Bukidnon, Camarines Sur, Negros Occidental, Palawan, Pampanga, and Tarlac.
Out of the 11 kidnappings recorded this month, two incidents resulted in the demise of victims. The incidents were perpetrated by unidentified armed men who abducted a woman and a delivery rider. Analysts note that the suspects seemed to have other motivation than abducting the victims. The incidents appeared to have been done to transfer the victims to another location for eventual execution. Meanwhile, one incident was POGO-related, where the suspects abducted one Cambodian and one Vietnamese nationals. Analysts note that POGO/gambling-related abductions are a recurring and systemic issue. Although there were more POGO/gambling-related incidents in the previous years, a few incidents are still being recorded each month since February 2021.
PSA recorded three successful kidnap rescue operations this month. The operations were in response to one POGO-related and two personal dispute-related abductions targeting one Cambodian, one Malaysian, one Vietnamese, and four Chinese nationals. The victims were held by their captors in less than a day prior to their rescue.
