Omar inspecting a parade during his visit to Lahad Datu police headquarters yesterday.
LAHAD DATU: The police here have yet to receive any demand for ransom from the kidnappers who took five Indonesian fishermen in Tambisan waters on January 15.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Omar Mammah said police were still waiting for the development of the case from their counterparts in the Philippines.
“The kidnapping was believed to have been committed by a kidnap-for ransom group and police are still investigating.
“The three other crew members of the ship who were released by the kidnappers revealed that the five fishermen were taken by six armed men to a neighbouring country,” he said.
Omar, who was on a working visit to Lahad Datu police headquarters yesterday when asked on efforts to curb kidnapping incident, said police were acting in accordance with the law and police requirements to deal with this issue.
He said the effort includes increasing the presence of police, especially in Sabah’s east coast areas.
“This prevention effort with cooperation from other security agencies has successfully foiled 40 attempts of kidnapping since 2018,” he said.
Omar also disclosed that the proposal to retain the curfew in Pulau Ligitan (Tawau), Pegasus Reef (Kinabatangan), Alice Reef (Kunak) and Geem Reef (Lahad Datu) would be presented to the Home Ministry and Inspector General of Police.
He added that the paperwork was in the final stage and it was hoped that the proposal could be implemented to safeguard the security in Sabah’s east coast.