A 19-year-old college student in Lipa City, Batangas was arrested after police discovered that the kidnapping that alarmed his family was a scheme he staged himself to demand ₱300,000 ransom.
The incident began on September 2 when the student’s mother received messages from an account pretending to be connected to her son’s kidnappers. The sender demanded ₱300,000 in exchange for his release and gave the family only two hours to provide the money.
The mother immediately sought police assistance after receiving videos showing her son blindfolded and crying while asking his parents for help. The videos were also shared with relatives, friends, and other individuals, increasing fear that an actual kidnapping had taken place.
Police traced his movements during the investigation and located him at a hotel in Calamba, Laguna. Authorities initially checked his condition, but a review of CCTV footage showed that he entered the hotel alone and that no abduction occurred.
Lipa City Police Chief Police Lieutenant Colonel Atty. Aleli Cuyan Buaquen said the investigation found that the reported kidnapping was fabricated.
“Malinaw na lumabas na investigation natin na walang kidnapping o serious illegal detention, kundi isang pagpapanggap lang,” Buaquen said.
Police described the incident as a “kidnap-me” scheme, where a person pretends to have been abducted to obtain money from their own family.
The student later admitted staging the incident. He said he was struggling with debt from a lending app and became afraid that he would not be able to pay it.
“Nabaon ako sa utang gawa ng lending app and sobra akong natakot na hindi bayaran kaya ‘yun ‘yung nagawa kong way para masolusyunan ‘yung problema ko,” the student said.
Authorities said the fabricated kidnapping caused fear among relatives and members of the public while creating the impression of a serious peace and order concern in the area.
The student faces a complaint for violation of Article 154 of the Revised Penal Code in relation to Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
