Police operatives are hunting down the suspects behind the abduction of a Chinese woman in Makati City.
Philippine National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac told reporters that they have identified the suspects as well as the owner of the van used to kidnap the victim.
“Ang pag-abduct ng ilang Chinese nationals, ‘yan ay agad nating tinugunan at inimbestigahan. Natukoy na natin ang mga suspek,” he said.
“Ang pinakahuli, sa Makati, patuloy na tinutugis ng ating pulis ang suspek. Natukoy na ang may–ari ng van na ginamit.”
The Makati Police had identified the woman as Zhou Mei, 28, who was dragged by two men into a waiting van past 9 p.m. Monday along Paseo de Roxas corner Perea St. in Legazpi Village.
Banac said PNP operatives ar now closely monitoring the movements of known personalities from China involved in criminal operations.
“Malakas ang ating pakikipagugnayan sa embahada ng China at counterpart ng pulis sa China para mapigilan ang ganitong mga insidente,” he said.
According to data from the PNP Anti-Kidnapping Group, there is an increasing number of kidnap-for-ransom cases involving Chinese nationals, but still fewer compared to hundreds of incidents in previous decades.
In 2018, 17 Chinese nationals were kidnapped, or more than double (112.5 percent) compared to eight in 2017. In the first half of 2019, six Chinese nationals were kidnapped.
The incidents came following the influx of Chinese tourists and workers in the Philippines as ties between Manila and Beijing continue to improve.
