Kidnappers free trader in southern Philippines

ZAMBOANGA — A man apparently released by kidnappers after two months in captivity was found dazed in the southern Philippines and identified through engravings on his cane that give details of his abduction, officials said Sunday. Vicente Barrios was abandoned by his kidnappers Saturday afternoon in a remote part of Sumisip town on Basilan island, two months after kidnappers abducted him while he was on his way to inspect family-owned fish cages near Zamboanga city, military officials said. Barrios, who is in his 60s, was weak and stunned from the ordeal, and could not speak the dialect of villagers who found him in a wooded area near a river. They managed to identify him through his cane, where his name, date of abduction and apparent name of the leader of his kidnappers were engraved, Basilan Vice Governor Al Rasheed Sakalahul said. It was not immediately clear who etched those details, he said. Barrios is among several victims believed abducted by common outlaws then passed on to al-Qaida-linked Muslim militant groups like the violent Abu Sayyaf, regional military commander Lt. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino said. No group has claimed responsibility for Barrios' kidnapping. Abu Sayyaf, which has about 400 fighters on Basilan and nearby islands, has been blamed for many recent kidnappings, along with deadly bombings and beheadings. The group has been blacklisted by Washington as a terrorist organization. —AP