Majan Sahidjuan, alias Apo Mike, was seriously wounded in a gun battle with the Marines in the city of Tongian in the south of Tawi-Tawi province on Saturday night, and later died, Lieutenant-General Corleto Vinluan Jr.
He described Sahidjuan as the mastermind in several abductions by Abu Sayyaf, who is based in Sulu and has been involved in bombings and piracy for decades. Since 2014, he has declared allegiance to the Islamic State group.
“We are glad that all the hostages are safe now and that we can also neutralize the infamous ‘Apo Mike’ and two of his comrades,” Vinluan, commander of the Western Mindanao Command, told the military.
Sahidjuan was among five Abu Sayyaf militants who went by boat with their four Indonesian kidnapping victims from Sulu to Tawi-Tawi last Thursday.
Their boat capsized after being hit by big waves, giving government forces a chance to rescue three of the four hostages – Arizal Kasta Miran (30); Arsad Bin Dahlan, 41; and Andi Riswanto, 26.
The fourth, 15-year-old Mohd Khairuldin, was found by government troops in the same village where the shooting took place.
The four hostages were among five Indonesians abducted by the Abu Sayyaf on January 17 last year, outside Tambisan in Malaysia. One of the five died when he tried to escape.