Body dumped

YouTube star kidnapped and murdered in the Philippines

YouTuber Elliot Eastman

(Bild: Facebook.com/Elliot Eastman)

The American YouTuber Elliot Eastman is dead. He was abducted from his home in the Philippines and fatally wounded with a firearm in a scuffle with his tormentors. His body was then dumped in the sea. This was confirmed by his wife.

Eastman is said to have been kidnapped by four men in Zamboanga del Norte at the beginning of October - probably to extort a ransom from his American family.

The men left his wife Karisha, who had been in the house with the 26-year-old, unharmed. When they dragged Eastman onto a speedboat, the YouTuber put up a fight.

Shots were fired, Eastman was hit in the leg and fatally shot. His kidnappers threw the body into the sea when they realized that the 26-year-old was no longer breathing.

A month later, the police caught one of the kidnappers by chance. He confirmed the course of events and Eastman's death. According to the report, the YouTuber was shot with an M16.

Elliot's last post on Instagram:

"As long as I'm here, my life is in danger"
On November 12, three people involved were shot dead by the Philippine executive in a firefight, reports the Daily Mail. Eastman himself had expressed doubts in the fall about his place of residence, where he had moved for the sake of his native wife. "As long as I'm here, my life is in danger. Especially in this area, a 'red zone'," he wrote on Facebook on September 22.

Body not found
Relatives and authorities had hoped for weeks that Eastman was still alive and desperately searched for the missing foreigner. The body has not yet been found.

The southern region of the Philippines has been struggling with constant separatist attacks for decades and extremist groups are up to mischief. Extreme poverty is also a challenge.