Makati City police successfully rescued a 33-year-old Vietnamese national who was a victim of a kidnap-for-ransom scheme, while three Chinese nationals were arrested during the high-risk operation.
National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Director P/Maj. Gen. Anthony Aberin identified the suspects as alias Lei, 32, alias Xing, 33, and alias Zhou, 38.
According to Aberin, the victim was recovered during a midnight rescue operation in a condominium unit at the corner of Amorsolo and Arnaiz Avenue, Barangay San Lorenzo, Makati City.
Reports indicate that last Wednesday, the suspects lured the victim to meet them in Makati before forcibly taking her to Tagaytay, where she was allegedly drugged, raped, and filmed by five unidentified individuals.
Following the incident, the victim was returned to the suspects’ condominium in Makati, where they demanded a ransom of 500 million Vietnamese Dong (approximately ₱1,000,000) from her husband abroad, threatening to cut off her fingers if the amount was not paid.
Alarmed, the victim’s husband sought help from a friend in the Philippines, who immediately reported the crime to authorities.
Upon receiving the information, law enforcement swiftly conducted a rescue operation at the condominium, leading to the arrest of the three suspects.
Authorities seized two firearms—a 9mm Taurus pistol and a .22 Jennings pistol—along with magazines, ammunition, 20 grams of suspected shabu in seven sachets worth ₱136,800, a vial of suspected liquid ecstasy, handcuffs, fake boodle money, a Hyundai Starex van, a car plate, six car keys, two mobile phones used in the extortion scheme, and various drug paraphernalia, including a glass tube and lighter.