ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — Search and recovery operations for the remains of American vlogger Elliot Onil Eastman are ongoing in several areas in Sibuco, Zamboanga del Norte, police said yesterday.
This developed after the Zamboanga peninsula police confirmed that Eastman died on the night he was seized from the house of his in-laws in Sitio Tungawan, Barangay Poblacion.
Lt. Col. Ramoncelio Sawan, spokesman for the Zamboanga peninsula police, said a witness told probers that Eastman was shot twice and died while being transported in a motorized banca.
The witness said the kidnappers threw Eastman’s body into the sea.
Sawan said the information regarding the death of Eastman was made public 48 days after the kidnapping.
He said the Critical Investigation Management Task Group Eastman decided not to release the information immediately in order not to compromise police operations against the kidnappers.
Sawan said the US embassy has been informed about the death of Eastman.
He said the witness told the task group that Eastman’s body was thrown near the coast of Barangay Labuan in Zamboanga City, which borders the town of Sibuco.
The coastal areas of Sibuco and Labuan are known for having strong and unpredictable sea currentspowbet, he said.