
I mean, is this the wildest thing you've seen in awhile? A U.S. anti-kidnapping expert goes to Mexico to help out with the huge problem there with the kidnappings that are being done by Mexican gangs and he gets kidnapped himself ! Oh man. Here's some of the details from Breitbart:
Now, not to make light of the seriousness of all of these kidnappings and how dangerous and brazen these gangs in Mexico have become but this has gotta be more than a little embarassing for this guy.
A U.S. anti-kidnapping expert was abducted by gunmen in northern Mexico last week, a sign of just how bold this nation's kidnapping gangs have become.
U.S. security consultant Felix Batista was in Saltillo in Coahuila state to offer advice on how to confront abductions for ransom when he was snatched by unknown assailants on Dec. 10, said Charlie LeBlanc, the president of the Houston, Texas-based security firm ASI Global LLC., where Batista is a consultant.
"We have notified the FBI and Mexican authorities, and they are working on the case," LeBlanc said Monday. "What we are doing is we're offering our support to the family and hoping for the best."
Now, not to make light of the seriousness of all of these kidnappings and how dangerous and brazen these gangs in Mexico have become but this has gotta be more than a little embarassing for this guy.
US anti-kidnapping expert kidnapped in Mexico
MEXICO CITY (AP) - A U.S. anti-kidnapping expert was abducted by gunmen in northern Mexico last week, a sign of just how bold this nation's kidnapping gangs have become.
U.S. security consultant Felix Batista was in Saltillo in Coahuila state to offer advice on how to confront abductions for ransom when he was snatched by unknown assailants on Dec. 10, said Charlie LeBlanc, the president of the Houston, Texas-based security firm ASI Global LLC., where Batista is a consultant.
"We have notified the FBI and Mexican authorities, and they are working on the case," LeBlanc said Monday. "What we are doing is we're offering our support to the family and hoping for the best."
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City said it would not comment on the case, and LeBlanc declined to say whether a ransom demand had been received.
LeBlanc said Batista had his own security business and that "he was in Mexico for business that wasn't associated with our company."
Batista's work involved crisis management consulting, LeBlanc said. "Part of that could be or may involve negotiations with kidnappers."
ASI Global's Web site advertises "kidnap and ransom response" and says the company has worked for major insurance companies.
Kidnapping has become a rising problem in Mexico, but attacks on U.S. anti-crime consultants have largely been the stuff of movies. The seizure seems to echo the plot of a 2004 movie, "Man on Fire," in which Denzel Washington played a U.S. security consultant who takes on Mexican kidnappers and is abducted himself.
A series of high-profile kidnappings in which the victims were later found dead has sparked outrage in Mexico. In the past year, the bodies of daughter of the country's former sports commissioner and the son of a prominent businessman have been found.
Coahuila's governor set off a nationwide controversy by proposing to reinstate the death penalty for kidnappers who kill their victims. Mexico outlawed the death penalty in 2005 and abandoned it in practice decades ago.
Coahuila state law enforcement officials who were not authorized to be quoted by name said Batista had been giving talks to local police officials and businessmen on how to prevent or avoid kidnappings.
They said he apparently was snatched from a street outside a restaurant.
A profile of Batista posted—and later removed—from the ASI Global Web site described him as "the primary case officer for all cases throughout the Latin American region."
The site said Batista was a former U.S. Army major who is "known for conducting in-depth threat assessments, the successful resolution of nearly 100 kidnap and ransom cases (many on behalf of major insurance carriers) and investigations."
The company denied local media reports that Batista was a former FBI agent, and warned those reports could put his life at risk.
"We at ASI are very concerned for Felix's safety and would like to take this opportunity of stating categorically that Felix has never been an agent in the FBI," the company said in a statement.
There are alot of morons out there selling advice on security and this was an obvious fake. His name alone gave it away; and, of course, going to a kidnapping capital. The only way to avoid kidnapping is to have either a fully armed security detail, or have multiple clean identies and move hotels each night in a foreign city. Any other advice is nonsense.
ReplyDeleteYes, this will be embarassing if he lives through it. I don't know how anyone can be trusted in these towns. Everyone is corrupt and will sell you for 20pesos + plus the cost of drugs.
ReplyDeleteMaggie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by!
:Holger Danske