MANILA, Philippines -- Police rescued two hostages from their abductors who hijacked a 40-foot container van in the province of Rizal Tuesday, an official said Thursday.Oscar Molina, the van’s driver, and Andome Eliseo were presented to media as a ban against showing the suspects was being enforced by police. Aside from Molina and Eliseo, police also recovered P500,000 worth of stolen biscuits and noodles, said Director Raul Castañeda, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG). The van, with plate number HVF-708 and bound for Leyte province, was taken back Tuesday night by CIDG operatives from the suspects identified as Virgilio Estrella and Abelardo Palma, Castañeda said. Molina and Eliseo just left Mareck Subdivision in Cainta when the two suspects stopped them on the road, said Castañeda. Molina, who claimed he knew Estrella, allowed the two to board the van. “Kilala ko kasi driver namin dati sa kumpanya yung isa [I know them because one used to be a driver of the company],” he told media. Eliseo said the two suspects suddenly pointed a gun at them, tied them up, and blindfolded them.
“Sabi sa amin huwag daw kami papalag kundi mamamatay kami [They told us that we should not try to escape or else we would die],” Eliseo said. Prior to the hijacking, Senior Police Officer 2 Hanni Salih already spotted the suspects whom he described as acting suspicious. Salih said he then followed Estrella and saw him flag down the container van. Salih said he trailed the container van but a mechanical problem with his motorcycle slowed him down. It was then that he called for reinforcement. When CIDG operatives finally caught up with the van, one of the suspects, armed with a pistol, attempted to escape but police were able to chase him down. Castañeda said that if police were unable to rescue the two hostages, the driver, Molina, could have been killed by the suspects. “Kasi kilala siya eh[He knows them], so may [there is a] witness,” he said. The two suspects are now facing charges of highway robbery and illegal possession of firearms. | 
