An alleged member of a Philippine Muslim extremist group was extradited to the United States to face charges of kidnapping four US citizens, US embassy statements said on Saturday.
Madhatta Haipe, also known as Commander Haipe, was sent to the United States on Thursday to face charges of "hostage-taking" and other crimes. He could face life imprisonment, the embassy statements said. US ambassador Kristie Kenney identified Haipe as a suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf, a Muslim extremist group that intelligence agencies have linked to the Al-Qaeda terror network.
Haipe, a former university professor in Islamic studies, allegedly led a group of armed men in abducting 16 people, including four Americans, from a waterfall site in the southern island of Mindanao on December 27, 1995, the embassy said. The hostages were threatened and mistreated until they were ransomed off later that month, the embassy said. Haipe had eluded arrest until earlier this year. |
