Esscom director-general Datuk Muhammad Mentek said security personnel had attempted to intercept the boat used by the kidnappers when shots were exchanged near Pulau Mataking.
“The kidnappers from the southern Philippines successfully evaded capture in international waters,” said Mohammad Mentek in a brief statement to the press.
He said the victim, from Guangzhao, China, was abducted from the Wonderful Terrace Fish Farm on Pulau Baik, at about 2.45am Tuesday.
Mohammad said the victim, Yang, had been working the fish farm, which is owned by a Chinese national from Hong Kong, for three years.
He said initial investigations have revealed the company had 16 employees. Among them were seven Suluk men and woman, who did not have valid documents.
Sabah Police Commissione Datuk Hamza Taib is scheduled to hold a press conference on the incident Tuesday evening.
Yang’s abduction is the second recent kidnapping of a Chinese national in the area. Last month, Chinese tourist Gao Huayun, 29, and Filipina resort worker Marcy Dayawan, 40, were seized from a resort in Sabah.
The string of violence highlights the security challenges Malaysia faces in the area, after last year’s Lahad Datu intrusion.
The eastern part of Sabah has seen several kidnappings despite increased security.
The Abu Sayyaf militant group in the southern Philippines have only a few hundred gunmen, but have been blamed for the worst terror attacks in the country’s history, including bombings and kidnappings.
The group was set up in the 1990s, reportedly with seed money from Al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden.
Last November, suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen kidnapped a Taiwanese couple holidaying in Pom-Pom Island.
The husband was killed during the abduction. His wife was freed after being held for 36 days on the main Sulu island of Jolo. A ransom is believed to have been paid.
By Neville Spykerman
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