In a significant breakthrough, authorities in Zamboanga City have captured the alleged orchestrator of the abduction of American blogger Elliot Eastman. The arrest took place on a ferry crossing the Basilan Strait, executed with the assistance of the 55th Special Forces Company of the police. The suspect, identified as 35-year-old Jackaria Jamani from Sibuco, Zamboanga del Norte, was apprehended based on a warrant issued for kidnapping and serious illegal detention by a court in Siocon on December 25, 2024. Following his arrest, Jamani, believed to be affiliated with the Abu Sayyaf Group, was handed over to the Sibuco Municipal Police Station. Elliot Eastman was kidnapped from his residence in Barangay Poblacion, Sibuco, on the night of October 17, 2024, by four armed assailants. During the abduction, Eastman was shot after attempting to resist and was subsequently taken away on a motorboat. Tragically, it was later confirmed on December 5, 2024, that Eastman had succumbed to his injuries on the night of his kidnapping, and his body was disposed of in the sea. Eastman, originally from Vermont, had been residing in Sibuco with his wife for five months prior to the incident.
