Suspected Philippine Abu Sayyaf rebels have demanded a ransom in exchange for the release of two Malaysians seized in Borneo earlier in the week, a Malaysian police official said on Sunday.
The kidnappers have allowed Thien Nyuk Fun, a restaurant owner, and Bernard Ted Fen to speak to their families, according to Sabah police chief Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman. Jalaluddin did not disclose when the kidnappers contacted the families of the victims or how much ransom money was demanded, but he said the captives were unharmed and being held in the southern Philippines.
Thien, aged 50, and Bernard, aged 39, were kidnapped late on Thursday by four gunmen in a seaside restaurant in Sandakan town in Sabah, 1 850km east of Kuala Lumpur.
The gunmen seized the victims in front of dozens of restaurant customers and dragged them to a motorized boat before fleeing.
It was the first kidnapping in eastern Malaysia since the government imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in the area in July 2014.
The curfew was prompted by a rash of kidnappings in Sabah perpetrated by suspected Muslim Abu Sayyaf militants from the nearby Philippine island of Jolo.
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