Abu Sayyaf gunmen threaten send back Malaysian captive's head to wife if ransom not paid

KOTA KINABALU: Abu Sayyaf militants are threatening to behead Kunak fish breeder Chan Sai Chuin if the RM3mil ransom is not paid in November.

Chan’s wife Chin Pek Nyen said the militants had not set any particular day for their November deadline but warned her they would kill him if the full ransom was not paid.

"They (Abu Sayyaf) told me that they will send back Chan's head if I fail to pay the ransom," Chin, 42, told a press conference here as she appealed to the state and federal governments to do more to secure her husband’s freedom.

She said the Abu Sayyaf gunmen made the threat during a call on Thursday night.

"I just do not know what to do. I tried raising the ransom by borrowing from friends and family.

"There no way I can raise it, how much can people lend me, I need the help of the Government," she said, adding that gunmen were sticking to RM3mil demand after reducing it from RM15mil to RM10mil over the past months.

Chan, who is from Perak, was abducted by Filipino gunmen from his fish farm on June 16 and is currently being held by Abu Sayyaf militants in an undisclosed location in the notorious southern Philippines island of Jolo.

Chin said the gunmen had refused to allow her to speak to her husband since July 27 and she could not say for certain if he was safe and unhurt.

"They tell me he is all right. They refused to let me speak to him. They call me at least once every two days.

"They ask me if I have raised the money. Asked me if I have raised RM1mil. When I say no, they get angry and threatened to kill my husband. They call me up to 17 times a day, until I answer the call," she said.

In her frustration, she said she had offered herself as hostage so she could be with husband and not "worry" about raising the ransom amount.

Chin hoped that Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak would help secure Chan's release through various channels in Manila.

"I am a Malaysian, my husband is Malaysian, why is nobody helping us," she said.

"I really don't know what do now, I hope our Government will help," she added.

Abu Sayyaf gunmen are also holding a marine policemen, Kpl Zakiah Aleip, 26, who was abducted from Mabul island on July 12.