MANILA: Four suspects from China were arrested for allegedly kidnapping their compatriots, who work for a Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO), in Bacoor, Cavite.
The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) revealed police made the arrests during a raid in Barangay Mambog IV on Friday, the Philstar.com portal reported.
CIDG director Major General Eliseo Cruz said the four suspects, aged 28 to 31, were held in the raid at what appeared to be a hideout.
They were pursued for the alleged kidnap of seven Chinese people, three men a
nd four women, in Barangay Mariana, Quezon City last week.
The suspects are being held on charges of kidnapping, serious illegal detention, robbery and illegal possession of a firearm.
Recovered from the suspects were one .45-caliber handgun as well as the victims' identification cards and cell phones. The CIDG is conducting a follow-up operation to locate the victims.
Colonel Randy Glenn Silvio, who heads the CIDG National Capital Region field unit, had said the victims were kidnapped by six men armed with short and long firearms at their house at the corner of Gilmore and 11th streets.
The victims' driver reported the incident to police, who in turn launched a dragnet operation, Silvio added.
"Based on information that we received, the relatives of the victims will be contacted by the kidnappers, who are also Chinese citizens and will demand ransom, to be paid through virtual currency," Silvio said.
Police said they have been receiving information about the rampant kidnappings of Chinese citizens, mostly POGO employees, in the past few months.