Liverpool player Luis Diaz’s father was kidnapped on Saturday; air and land patrols as well as members of country’s special forces have been searching a mountain range that straddles Colombia’s border with Venezuela; police have offered a $48,000 (39,000) reward for information
Colombian police are searching a mountain range in the north of the country for the kidnapped father of Liverpool forward Luis Diaz.Luis Manuel Diaz and his wife were at a petrol station in the small town of Barrancas on Saturday when they wereabducted by armed police.
The forward’s mother, Cilenis Marulanda, was rescued within hours by police after they set up roadblocks around the town near Colombia’s border with Venezuela. However, his father remains missing.
Air and land patrols as well as members of the country’s special forces have been searching a mountain range that straddles both countries and is covered by cloud forest.
Police have also offered a $48,000 (39,000) reward for information leading to the rescue of Diaz’s father.
Officials said they did not rule out the possibility that he could have been smuggled into Venezuela, where he would be beyond the reach of Colombian police.
In a post on social media, Colombian police director general William Salamanca was shown visiting the operation in order to “recognise our commandos for their bravery and commitment to rescue him safe and sound”.
On Monday, Salamanca urged caution with regards to reports that Luis Manuel might already have been taken into Venezuela, pointing to the difficulty of crossing the Perija mountains.
