A Taiwanese man who was locked in a room in the Philippines by his Philippine girlfriend managed to escape and return to Taiwan earlier this week, after allegedly being kept prisoner for two weeks.
The girlfriend reportedly stole the passport and personal belongings — including a cellphone and identity card — of the 20-year-old, identified only by his family name, Chen (陳), Taiwan’s representative office in the Philippines said.
Chen on Wednesday broke out of his room when his girlfriend was out of the house and immediately tried to contact the office from a nearby Internet cafe using his only remaining pocket change, the office said.
He also managed to call his family back home so that they could alert local authorities to his plight, the office said, adding that Chen finally managed to escape in a taxi the following day with the assistance of the representative office, which helped him board a flight to Taiwan.
The two apparently had met at their workplace in Taiwan in March and began dating, according to police in New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋), who were informed of the case by Chen’s mother.
His girlfriend in August announced that she was pregnant, but returned to the Philippines on Dec. 6, the police said, adding that Chen flew there on Dec. 8 to meet and marry his girlfriend.
The woman wanted to extort him for money, not marry him, Taiwanese authorities said.
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