Kidnap-for-ransom suspects Alvarez and Haider Isnaji on Friday entered a not guilty plea to the kidnapping of ABS-CBN News anchor Ces Oreña Drilon and her camera crew in July 2008.

The father and son entered the plea before the Taguig  Regional Trial Court branch 271 under Judge Paz Esperanza Cortes.

 Alvarez Isnaji, mayor of Indanan, Sulu, said he had no hand in the kidnapping and merely helped negotiators in securing the release of Drilon and her team.

Drilon, meanwhile, said authorities have enough evidence to prove the Isnajis' guilt.

Cortes postponed the pretrial hearing to February 20 after prosecutors filed a motion for preliminary conference. The Isnajis also have a pending petition for bail.

The Court of Appeals Sixth Division, meanwhile, ordered the continued detention of the Isnajis after rejecting their petition for habeas corpus. The two are currently detained at Camp Bagong Diwa.

Drilon and ABS-CBN cameramen Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderrama were abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf members while on assignment in Sulu last June 2008.

The Isnajis helped in the negotiations but were later charged before the Sulu regional trial court for allegedly helping the kidnappers.

abs-cbnNEWS.com is the online news department of ABS-CBN Interactive Inc., a subsidiary of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp.