Irish Catholic missionary Michael Sinnott told authorities this week that the killing of Waning Abdulsalam may have been warranted, but that he was not the person who kidnapped him in 2009.
Sinnott was released in November of 2009, and he and several other foreigners were kidnapped in Mindanao. Authorities said that Abdulsalam was their kidnapper, but now Sinnott said this was not the case.
Abdulsalam was killed this past week after he resisted arrest by a joint military and police entrapment in Zamboanga Sibugay.
Abdulsalam is also believed to have a major connection to several factions of the Abu Sayyaf Group.
However, Sinnott is doubtful that Abdulsalam was among those who abducted him saying “They say he belongs to Abu Sayyaf and if Abu Sayyaf had me then I don’t think I would be alive now.”
Sinnott spoke openly to The Irish Catholic, an influential and independent Catholic newspaper in Ireland.
He told the newspaper “The name is not one of the names that the kidnappers gave me. He may be someone who kidnapped a lot of people, but I don’t think he kidnapped me.”
Sinnott spent the rest of his missionary work in Pagadian City for approximately 33 years until he was kidnapped on October 11th, 2009 and released on November 12th, 2009.
After 42 years of missionary work in the Philippines, Sinnott left the country in July 2012 and retired back in his native country of Ireland.
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