45 foreigners held for for kidnapping tourist from Manila resort

Policemen guard some of the 43 arrested foreigners, mostly Chinese nationals, for kidnapping a Singaporean woman at a casino resort in Manila. Picture: Romeo Ranoco/Reuters

Policemen guard some of the 43 arrested foreigners, mostly Chinese nationals, for kidnapping a Singaporean woman at a casino resort in Manila. Picture: Romeo Ranoco/Reuters

Published Jul 20, 2017

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Manila - Philippine police said on

Thursday they had arrested 43 foreigners for kidnapping a

Singaporean woman at a casino resort in the capital,

highlighting security concerns that have scared high-stakes

gamblers away from Manila.

Police said the gang, including people from China and

Southeast Asia, was believed to be a loan-shark syndicate

targeting foreign high-rollers, with 11 similar cases reported

since 2015.

The Philippines is one of the fastest-growing casino hubs in

Asia, after Macau and Singapore, with the opening of several

resorts over the past two years.

But security remains a major concern that has deterred

big-spending gamblers from China, wary about kidnapping and

extortion.

The 48-year-old Singaporean woman was losing heavily when

she was approached and befriended by three men and a woman at

the Solaire casino on July 17 who lent her money, police said.

They later invited the woman to another casino but she was

instead taken to a hotel where she was mistreated and video of

her was taken which her captors showed to her family with a

demand for $180 000 for her release.

National police chief Ronald dela Rosa said the woman was

rescued the next day.

Kidnapping complaints had been filed against two Malaysians

and 41 Chinese nationals in connection with the case, de la Rosa

said.

Solaire, which is owned by Bloomberry Resorts Corp

, said it did not tolerate loan sharks and was

coordinating with and supporting authorities in the fight

against crime.

"Solaire continues to closely safeguard all its patrons to

ensure their safety from unscrupulous personalities and

activities," it said in a statement.

Last month, a gunman who police said had gambling debts

stormed Manila's Resorts World casino, and set a fire in which

37 people were killed.

The kidnapping of the woman from Singapore would likely

compound fears about safety in the Philippines, an analyst said.

"This incident will make it even harder for the operators to

entice the high-rollers to visit," said Shaun McCamley, a

partner at Global Market Advisors based in Bangkok.

The Philippines targets gross gaming revenue of 155 billion

to 160 billion pesos ($3.1 billion to $3.2 billion) this year,

up 4 percent to 7 percent from last year, data showed. 

Reuters

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