At around 8pm on Mon, Apr 25, the severed head of John Ridsdel, 68, a Canadian national, was found at the center of Jolo town. According to the Philippine Army, residents had seen two men on a motorcycle dropping off the plastic bag containing the severed head.
Ridsdel, along with fellow Canadian Robert Hall, Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad, and Filipina Marithes Flor, were kidnapped from the Holiday Oceanview Samal Resort on Samal Island last Sep 21, 2015 by the Abu Sayyaf Group. The extremist group had initially demanded PHP1 billion for each of them as ransom. The amount was brought down to PHP300 million (or around US$6.4 million).
On Mon, they set the ransom deadline 3pm local time. It was not clear if this deadline applied to all the hostages or to just Risdel in particular.
“Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau condemned the execution of a Canadian hostage by Abu Sayyaf militants in the Philippines,” reports Reuters.
“Canada condemns without reservation the brutality of the hostage-takers and this unnecessary death. This was an act of cold-blooded murder and responsibility rests squarely with the terrorist group who took him hostage,” Trudeau told reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting.
He added: “The government of Canada is committed to working with the government of the Philippines and international partners to pursue those responsible for this heinous act.”
The report noted: “Trudeau declined to respond when asked whether the Canadian government had tried to negotiate with the captors or pay a ransom, or whether it was trying to secure the release of Hall.”
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