According to reports, the Philippine police arrested two suspects involved in the kidnapping of a Chinese national woman in Manila, one of whom is a male Taiwanese national, reigniting concerns about the safety of the Chinese community in the Philippines.
Identity of the suspects revealed, one is a "translator"
The police stated that the Taiwanese suspect, named Rex Chong Sheng Wue, 27 years old, claims to be a translator; the other suspect is a 24-year-old Filipino motorcyclist named Renard. They were arrested respectively in Parañaque and Pasay.
The two are accused of kidnapping 41-year-old Chinese woman Shero Zhou in the Malate district of Manila on April 17. Ms. Zhou went missing after leaving her residence, prompting her friends to call the police.
Ransom in cryptocurrency, released afterwards
According to the police investigation, the suspects demanded a ransom of 500,000 pesos from Ms. Zhou, requesting the amount to be transferred to a cryptocurrency account. After her two friends complied with the demand, Ms. Zhou was released last Sunday, April 21, near a shopping center in Pasay.
Following leads, the police raided a residential area in Parañaque, arresting Rex on the spot and later detaining his accomplice Renard in Pasay on the same day. Both are currently detained at the Manila Police District (MPD) Criminal Investigation Department, awaiting further interrogation.
Frequent kidnappings, Philippine police set up a special task force
The incident occurs amidst a high incidence of kidnapping cases in the Philippines. Previously, a Chinese steel businessman surnamed Guo and his driver were kidnapped and killed in Manila, causing public outrage; another case involved a 14-year-old Chinese student who had his fingers brutally cut off during a kidnapping.
To combat these increasingly rampant criminal activities, the Philippine National Police has urgently established a "Anti-Kidnapping Joint Action Committee", aimed at tackling and dismantling crime syndicates involved in transnational kidnapping, extortion, and violence from the root.
