January 13, 2009	Tuesday	Muharram 15, 1430

MANILA, Jan 12: A Pakistani businessman and his Filipino companion kidnapped last week by armed assailants have been rescued unharmed, Philippines police said on Monday.

Yasser Irfan and Ramon Bacares were seized by gunmen on Friday in Bagac, a town in the northern Bataan province, by a gang that had demanded a ransom of up to five million pesos (105,485 dollars), the national police said.

The victims’ family managed to negotiate for a lower amount and promptly told police of the incident.

A pay-off took place before dawn on Sunday and the two were released along a deserted highway, police said.

Follow-up operations were conducted, leading to the arrest of six suspects, and the recovery of marked money that would be used as evidence, police said in a statement.

Armed gangs specialising in kidnapping for ransom have been a major security problem in Manila and nearby provinces.

In 2003, the government ordered an intensified crackdown after a Coca-Cola Filipino executive was kidnapped and later brutally murdered by kidnappers, her body stuffed inside a sack and dumped on a Manila road.—AFP