no hostage taking happened in Boracay, but police still guarding the place for safety

Miami
November 6, 2008
Story: no hostage taking happened in Boracay, but police still guarding the place for safety

The police downplay the report that the Australian national together with his family are being hostage inside the house that they are staying in Boracay.

According to Supt. Arnold Ardiente, Chief of Police of Boracay, there is no hostage taking happening. In fact, the Australian and his family is the one who do not want to go out of the apartment-type house that they are staying.

Ardiente said the tension started Wednesday night, at around 10:20 pm when the owner of the land identified as Editha Meren, a Filipina, wants to talk to the Australian identified as Greg Hutchinson, his Filipina wife Viveca to inform them that they have no rights to stay at the Sand Castle Resort anymore because the contract is being terminated already. Aside from the couple, their twins are also inside the house, but the police cannot confirm the genders of the twins.

The Australian couple is the one running the Sand Castle as part of the contract they have with Meren.

Meren told the police that she already terminated the contract with the Hutchinson since October 2007. However the police cannot get the comment of the Hutchinson because the family is refusing to talk to anyone.

Ardiente said the Hutchinson is waiting for their lawyers to come by Friday and the negotiations between them and Meren will take place.

Ardiente also said that no one from both parties are complaining to the policemen that is why the police are not investigating anything.

“We are only here at the area to provide security for the safety of the people here or anything that may happen, at least we are here to respond immediately,” Ardiente said.

He added that the Hutchinson family are staying at the second floor of one of the apartment-type house in the Sand Castle resort.