Manila Children Held Hostage on Bus

Mar 28, 07:07 AM

Current Headlines: Two armed men commandeered a bus Wednesday in downtown Manila, holding 32 preschool children and two teachers hostage.

One of the hijackers was Jun Ducat, a 60-year-old day-care center operator who used a cell phone and handmade signs to speak with police and journalists.

We have 2 grenades, an Uzi and a .45-caliber pistol, one of the signs said.

Ducat said he had no intention of harming the children and denounced the government and demanded better housing and education for the 145 children at his center, CNN reported. There was no information on Ducat's partner.

Ducat had promised to release the children at 7 p.m., but the deadline passed without action, the BBC said.

One child who felt sick was released and police had to restrain frantic parents who crowded around the bus outside city hall.

In the 1980s, Ducat took two Roman Catholic priests hostage over a pay dispute, CNN said.