Kidnapping for Ransom (KFR) in Eastern Sabah is a phenomenon conducted by the non-state actors mostly from the southern Philippines who came into eastern Sabah territory to conduct kidnapping for the sake of ransom payments in order to fundtheir sustainability . Sixteen cases into three trends which is before ESSCOM establishment from 2000 until 2012, after ESSCOM establishment from 2013-2015 and for the year of 2016 itself. The objective of this research is to identify the factors encouraging KFR in east coast of Sabah and to identify challenges face by ESSCOM as an organization given the rsponsibility to tackle the KFR phenomenon.
