| Philippine authorities are holding a man linked to the kidnapping of an Indonesian and two Malaysian seamen off the southern Tawi-Tawi province, officials said yesterday. Ten suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen onboard motor boats intercepted the MV Ocean 2 barge and seized the trio Sam Walter Pel and Wong Sien Nung and Toh Chien Tiong near the island of Baguan several nautical miles from Tawi-Tawi province on April 11. Seven other seamen hid in the deck when the gunmen boarded the vessel, officials said. "We are questioning the man about his role or what he knows about the kidnappings of the three seamen by the Abu Sayyaf. We are still tracking down his companions," Tawi-Tawi police chief Esa Hasan told Arab News. Hasan said Abu Sayyaf members were among those behind the kidnapping. |