Colombian police comb by cloud forest trying to find soccer star’s kidnapped father

BOGOTA, Colombia — Police air and land patrols searched a cloud forest in northern Colombia on Monday for soccer star Luis Díaz’s father, who was kidnapped over the weekend together with the participant’s mom.

The couple have been at a gasoline station within the small city of Barrancas on Saturday after they have been kidnapped by armed males on bikes. Diaz’s mom, Cilenis Marulanda, was rescued inside hours by police that arrange roadblocks across the city of 40,000 folks, which is close to Colombia’s border with Venezuela.

However his father, Luis Manuel Díaz, remained lacking. On Monday, particular forces searched a mountain vary that straddles each international locations and is roofed by cloud forest. Police additionally supplied a $48,0000 reward for data resulting in Diaz’s father.

Officers mentioned they didn’t rule out the likelihood that the elder Díaz may have been smuggled into Venezuela, the place he can be past the attain of Colombian police.

Díaz is likely one of the most proficient gamers on Colombia’s nationwide group and presently performs for Liverpool within the English Premier League, which he joined final 12 months in a deal price $67 million.

The 26-year-old striker was absent from Liverpool’s match towards Nottingham Forest on Sunday. Díaz’s teammates expressed their solidarity with the Colombian by holding up certainly one of his jerseys on the pitch after scoring the group’s first purpose of their 3-0 victory.

The kidnapping of Díaz’s dad and mom comes as kidnappings for ransom and extortion of companies enhance in Colombia regardless of efforts by the nation’s first left-wing authorities to dealer ceasefires with insurgent teams. Criminals and insurgent teams within the nation have lengthy kidnapped civilians for ransom with the intention to finance their operations.

Up to now, not one of the armed teams working in Colombia has claimed duty for kidnapping Diaz’s dad and mom.