Rebels Claim They Killed Calif. Man

Muslim rebels claimed today that they had beheaded a Southern California man who was among the group’s two dozen hostages, but the Philippine military cautioned that the guerrillas have previously lied about such killings.

Abu Sabaya, a leader of the Abu Sayyaf rebels, called a radio station and said the guerrillas had killed Guillermo Sobero, 40, a resident of Corona, who was among 20 people abducted from an upscale island resort in May.

“We chopped the head of Guillermo Sobero,” Sabaya told the station. He said the killing occurred near the town of Tuburan and told the military, “Find his body.”

In Corona, Sobero’s family fearfully held out hope that the report was false. Neuza Chiong, a spokeswoman for the family, said Sobero’s wife, Fanny, has been in regular contact with the State Department and the FBI, “but there is no official news. This could be a false rumor. That’s why we’re all hopeful.”

Fanny Sobero “is crying. She’s upset. There is a lot of emotion,” said Chiong, Fanny Sobero’s first cousin. “We just don’t know.”

Sobero’s three sons, ages 6, 3 and 2, do not know their father is missing, Chiong said.

“The family turns off the TV when the kids are around,” she said. “As far as they know, Daddy is still away. What do you tell them?”

Sobero, a contractor in the Riverside area, took an earlier trip to the Philippines in January, Chiong said. But his wife did not know he had taken the current trip until she was notified that he had been kidnapped, along with two other Americans and 17 Filipinos, on May 27--two days after his 40th birthday.

The two are divorcing but still live together in a Spanish-style house on Ripchak Road, where neighbors have tied yellow ribbons around the trees. Fanny Sobero thought her husband, who was born in Lima, Peru, had taken a trip to Lake Havasu, Chiong said.

The report of the killing came less than a day after the rebels said they had called off their threat to behead the three Americans. On Monday, the rebels said they were backing down after the Philippine government agreed to one of Sabaya’s demands, that a Malaysian negotiator be brought in to help settle the crisis.

The rebels have executed Philippine hostages in the past, but this is the first time they have claimed to have killed a foreigner.

In addition to Guillermo Sobero, the rebels have been holding Martin and Gracia Burnham, missionaries from Kansas.

The Americans and Filipinos were seized in Palawan province. Nine Filipinos later escaped, and two others were found dead, apparently executed.

On Monday, the rebels seized 15 new hostages, including children, and burned down a chapel in a village near the town of Lantawan on Basilan island.

The new hostages were seized despite the Philippine government’s decision to bring in Sairin Karno, a former Malaysian senator, as a negotiator.

Last year, with Karno and a Malaysian businessman negotiating, a ransom worth millions of dollars was reportedly paid by Libya to end a similar hostage crisis involving Abu Sayyaf rebels.

The military has said no ransom will be paid this time. The rebels used the previous ransom money to buy arms and boats used in last month’s abduction.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has ordered all-out war on the rebels, who say they are fighting to carve out an Islamic state in the southern Philippines.

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Times staff writer Scott Gold reported from Corona. Associated Press reported from the Philippines.