MAID ARRESTED FOR KIDNAPPING

TABACO CITY: A 26-year-old housemaid was arrested and charged in court without bail recommended for kidnapping a 17-month-old baby.

Maryanne Rodriguez, single, of Tigaon, Camarines Sur, was employed as maid of Dinah Azada Tabuzo's family of Barangay San Juan. On February 21, just her third day in the household, she kidnapped her employer's son, John Cid, and demanded a ransom of P200,000 for the baby's safe return.

The police report said the accused has misled her employer when she told them in a telephone at 1:30 p.m. that she was only in the vicinity of Tabaco.

Tabaco City Police Chief Insp. Roger Medalla, however, said that at 5 p.m. on same day, Rodriguez called her employer using another telephone number and reiterated an earlier demand of P200,000 to be transmitted via Western Union without identifying the branch address and name of assignee. The employer's telephone turned out to have a caller line identification.

Medalla said the caller was traced to be in Naga City, a telephone line of LRV Internet Caf� near the Central Business District Terminal. Shortly, a surveillance team sighted the housemaid and the baby at the location.

At 11:30 p.m. the accused was arrested by joint elements from the Camarines Sur Police, PNP Regional Intelligence Group and the Tabaco Police.

Rodriguez, who is now detained at the district jail here, is also facing robbery charges for carting away cash and Tabuzo's gold wristwatch.

Rodriguez, the police report said allegedly confessed that she did the kidnapping because she needed cash.

Tabuzo said the accused applied as a maid and she failed to ask for a police clearance or her biodata with photo from her.