South Korean businessman rescued from kidnappers
A South Korean businessman kidnapped by fellow Koreans in Pampanga, allegedly with the help of agents from the Bureau of Immigration (BI) and National Bureau of Immigration (NBI), was rescued on Saturday, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said yesterday.
PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa said operatives from the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) rescued Lee Jung Dae, 42, from a Toyota Fortuner parked at the BI compound in Intramuros, Manila at around 2 a.m.
Cha Jae Young, his twin brother Cha Jae Sun and their Filipino driver Raymond Flores were arrested. A followup operation on the same day led to the arrest of another suspect, Kim Min Kwan, also known as Michael Lim, near his condominium along Padre Faura street.
Kim was allegedly the one who contacted Carlos Garcia, a BI employee who remains at large, for an unofficial mission order against Lee and his three Korean employees at his restaurant, allegedly for violation of immigration laws.
Dela Rosa said Lee was taken from his home in Barangay Balibago, Angeles City at around 9 p.m. on Friday.
Earlier the same day, the suspects abducted Lee’s employees Kim Dae Hyun, Jung Ju Wan and Kim Woo Min.
“The negotiation was done while the kidnap victims were inside two separate motor vehicles,” said Dela Rosa in a press briefing.
The three employees were released after Lee’s girlfriend paid P1.2 million in ransom. The suspects, meanwhile, said they will only free Lee in exchange for P4 million, Dela Rosa said.
At least nine suspects are involved in the kidnapping, composed of six Filipinos and three Koreans, the PNP chief said.
Three are reportedly NBI agents assigned in Angeles while two, including Garcia, are with the BI.
AKG director Senior Superintendent Glenn Dumlao said they are still looking for the purported NBI and BI personnel.
“We still can’t confirm if they are really agents of the NBI,” Dumlao said in the same briefing.
Dela Rosa said the incident is somewhat similar to the case of of Jee Ick-joo, a Korean businessman who was kidnapped and murdered by police antinarcotics operatives last year at Camp Crame.
What is different, Dela Rosa said, is that no police personnel was involved in Lee’s kidnapping.
Flores, for his part, claimed he was unaware about the kidnapping, saying he was merely hired as a driver by his cousin who is in a relationship with one of the Korean suspects.
Kim also exonerated Flores, saying he was not part of the planning.
Asked if he has made an admission, Kim declined to comment but promised to cooperate with the investigation.