American reportedly kidnapped from a southern Philippine town

MANILA, Philippines — 

The Philippine constabulary said Friday it has launched a hunt aft gunmen reportedly abducted an American national, who was changeable successful the limb arsenic helium tried to defy earlier being spirited distant from a confederate Philippine coastal municipality by speedboat.

Police successful Sibuco municipality successful the confederate state of Zamboanga del Norte tried to prosecute the suspected abductors and their victim, who they identified arsenic Elliot Onil Eastman, 26, from Vermont, aft the reported abduction connected Thursday night.

"We corroborate that determination was a study of the alleged abduction of an American national," the determination constabulary said successful a statement. "We privation to guarantee the public, peculiarly the assemblage of Sibuco, that we are doing everything successful our powerfulness to unafraid the harmless betterment of the victim."

The constabulary asked the nationalist to instantly supply immoderate accusation that could assistance an ongoing probe of the reported abduction.

Two constabulary reports seen by The Associated Press said that a nonmigratory of Sibuco, Abdulmali Hamsiran Jala, reported to constabulary that 4 men successful achromatic covering who were equipped with M16 rifles and introduced themselves arsenic constabulary officers forcibly took Eastman, who tried to escape.

One of the gunmen changeable Eastman successful the limb earlier dragging him into a speedboat past fled by oversea further southbound toward the provinces of Basilan oregon Sulu, the constabulary reports said.

Policemen chased but failed to find the gunmen and Eastman and alerted different constabulary and Philippine marine units successful the region, according to the reports.

Philippine authorities did not instantly supply inheritance details of Eastman, but a idiosyncratic with a akin sanction has posted pictures and videos of himself connected Facebook saying helium had joined a Muslim pistillate successful Sibuco.

The U.S. Embassy successful Manila did not instantly respond to questions astir the reported abduction.

Muslim equipped bands led by the notoriously convulsive Abu Sayyaf carried retired predominant kidnappings for ransom much than 2 decades agone successful the south, location of a Muslim number successful the mostly Roman Catholic nation.

They targeted American and different Western tourists and spiritual missionaries, astir of whom were ransomed off. A fewer were killed, including an American who was beheaded connected the land state of Basilan and different who was killed portion service forces were trying to rescue him and his wife.

Relentless subject and constabulary offensives, however, person considerably weakened the Abu Sayyaf, which is considered arsenic a violent enactment by the U.S. and the Philippines and akin equipped groups and kidnappings for ransom yet waned.

The Philippines is to clasp mid-term elections adjacent twelvemonth for much than 18,000 section and nationalist posts. In the traditionally volatile south, crimes including kidnappings person traditionally spiked arsenic rogue politicians effort to rise funds to substance their campaigns, according to authorities.