The owner of Yorkshire’s The Forbidden Corner has been kidnapped in Ecuador, according to local police, along with his partner.
The Coverham attraction owner Colin Armstrong, 78, who is also the president of Ecuadorean agriculture company Agripac, was reportedly snatched at 2.45am Ecuador local time yesterday morning (Saturday, December 18) from his ranch called Rancho Rodeo Grande, in the province of Los Ríos.
Fifteen men entered the residence and abducted him and his partner, named locally as Katherine Paola Santos, who is of Colombian nationality, according to local reports. A video said to show signs of forced entry, along with traces of blood and ransacked rooms, is understood to be circulating on social media. Police have confirmed they are investigating the kidnap in Baba in the province of Los Rios.
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The honorary consul’s car, a black BMW the kidnap victims are said to have been driven away in, has reportedly been found abandoned on the road between Baba and the nearby town of Salitre.
Speaking to The Mirror, a spokesman for Ecuadorian police said: “Following an apparent criminal act against a businessman in the early hours of this morning in Los Rios, specialist police units are carrying out operative and investigative work on the ground.”
An FCDO spokesperson said: “We are in contact with the Ecuadorean authorities following the disappearance of a British man and are supporting his family.”
The Forbidden Corner is located within Mr Armstrong’s 500-acre Tupgill Park estate. A spokesperson for the estate told the BBC: “The thoughts and prayers of everyone at Forbidden Corner are with the Armstrong family.”
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