A female Ateneo de Manila University college student was allegedly kidnapped inside the campus grounds in Loyola Heights, Quezon City early evening Thursday, November 21, but police investigators of the Quezon City Police District maintain it was just a false story.
The student was held hostage in her own car at around 6:30 pm Thursday by several men, according to a source privy to the ongoing police probe. The men put her at the back seat and covered her face with a black bonnet.
The group contacted the victim's family at about 7 pm to ask for ransom. Negotiations happened throughout the night in the car, the source said, with the suspects even taking drugs while sorting out the ransom payment with the family on the phone.
The source told Rappler that the student's family sought the help of policemen who were able to monitor the suspects' and their victim's location by tracking their cell phone signals.
The suspects eventually left her alone in the car – which seemed to have overheated – at around 2:55 am Friday, November 22, near a Caltex station along Manggahan in Pasig City. The kidnappers took with them the student's phone, earrings, watch, and money.
They ran away without ransom, the source said, and "didn't touch" the victim.
However, in a DZMM story, it reported that Quezon City Police District (QCPD) director Richard Albano said the kidnapping never happened.
Albano said that based on the report of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Anti-Kidnapping Group, the parents of the 20-year-old female ADMU student denied that an abduction occurred.
Albano said the parents initially reported that their daughter was abducted on November 21, Thursday. They also claimed that they received a ransom demand of P250,000.
The student, however, was supposedly released the following day even if no ransom money was given.
When Rappler asked for the victim's comment on whether the kidnapping was staged, she said in a mix of English and Filipino: "[I'm] not gonna give any comment on that for now. We've forwarded our official statements to our lawyer already. Once notarized, that's what the media can use."
The university did not release any other information about the student, but assured that the latter is now in safe condition after being released.
Que said that in the wake of the incident, the university is putting in place immediate and short-term measures while studying more long-term policies.
He added the university has decided to install additional lighting and deploy more roving guards in the parking areas.
Likewise, stricter rules will also be enforced in the entry and exit of people and vehicles on campus. Some alternate entry points will also be closed.
"For this reason, we earnestly request the full cooperation of each member of the Ateneo community as we implement additional measures. Let us all remember that as a community, it is incumbent upon us to do our part," Que said. --Source: Rappler/DZMM