Police: Armed men take 16 people hostage in Agusan Sur

BUTUAN CITY – A group of armed men is keeping 16 people – students and school employees – hostage in Porsperidad town in Agusan del Sur province, a police official said Satruday. Caraga PNP regional director Chief Supt. Reynaldo S. Rafal said in a phone interview confirmed the hostage-taking incident. Last Friday evening, San Franz FM radio reported the hostage-taking started around 5 p.m. Friday in a school in Barangay La Purisima. Citing initial reports reaching him, Rafal said at least 10 armed men, suspected to be Manobo tribal warriors who are rebel returnees, are involved in the hostage-taking incident. Rafal said he has instructed the Agusan del Sur provincial police director Senior Supt. Jerome Baxinella and the regional police mobile group to immediately proceed to the area to conduct investigation and to extend needed assistance to the victims' relatives. Max Tutor, Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas president and station manager of San Franz FM radio, clained he was able to interview the leader of the hostage-takers through mobile phone of one of the teacher-hostages. “The leader of the abductors identified himself as Reyjoy Brital, a relative of detained Manobo tribal warrior leader (Danilo) 'Ondo' Perez. Brital demanded Ondo’s release and 10 others, including two minors who are incarcerated in the Agusan del Sur provincial jail for kidnapping charges," Tutor said. Tutor said that the at 11 p.m. Friday, the hostage-takers were already angered by the government's inaction on their demand and threatened to harm on of the hostages. "Why is there is no action on our demands? Do they want us to sacrifice one of our hostages here?" Tutor quoted Brital as saying. Brital told Tutor in local dialect. Tutor said Brital identified two teacher-hostages as Mrs. Filipina Quitoy, teacher-in-charge of Liberty Elementary School of Barangay La Purisima; and certain Mr. Cabantac, teacher-in-charge of VGP Elementary School. Meanwhile, Rafal told GMA News he was hoping the 24-hour deadline which will end Saturday evening, can still be extended. But earlier Brital issued warning his group will no longer accept any negotiations except for immediate release of Ondo Perez and others, saying they already learned a bitter lesson of being allegedly duped by hostage negotiators. Ondo Perez group Ondo was responsible for the hostage-taking in December 2009, where he and his men took 75 people, including children, hostage at the Maitum Elementary School in Sitio Maitum in San Martin village. Ondo and his men, at that time, fled to the school and took people hostage to prevent being arrested by police who are pursuing them for their alleged participation in the massacre of loved one of a certain Jun Tubay in February that year. It turned out that Tubay works for the Perezes' rival group, led by Datu Kalbit. Ondo demanded that members of Kalbit's group be disarmed. [See related: Agusan del Sur kidnapper: 'I want to meet my arch rival'] — Ben Serrano with Mark Merueñas/LBG, GMA News