Manila: An Army General says kidnappers have abandoned two South Korean businessmen as troops closed in on them in the restive southern Philippines.
The gunmen had been holding three South Korean businessmen. The first, Choi Inn-so, was released on Friday, apparently because he fell ill.
On Saturday, the other two were found in Lanao del Norte province. Army Maj Gen Noel Coballes says Wu Seok-bung and Kim Nam-du were weak and starving when troops found them.
Coballes said on Sunday that a Filipino guide seized with the Koreans on October 21 was reportedly shot in captivity, but that troops would continue to look for him and the kidnappers. The group were checking on a mining investment and had failed to return to their hotel.
Coballes said officials negotiated with the kidnappers, but that no ransom was paid.
Bureau Report
First Published: Sunday, November 27, 2011, 12:53