- Nineteen prisoners use cutlery to break out of cells at Winchester prison
- France wants progress in Ukraine before Russia returns to G7
- Italy president begins talks to seek way out of government crisis
- Italian PM expected to resign as political chaos deepens
- Russia says US cruise missile test ‘regrettable’
- Kremlin - No date set for Normandy talks on Ukraine despite Macron meeting
- Egypt court hands out 6 death sentences on terror charges
- Putin says Russian nuclear explosion poses no threat
- Russian panel eyes alleged foreign interference in protests
- Gran Canaria wildfire triggers evacuation of thousands of people
- PM Johnson calls on Germany and France to compromise on Brexit
- Sudan's ex-president Bashir arrives at corruption trial
TEHRAN, Apr 10 - Uganda has arrested eight local people suspected of involvement in the kidnap of an American tourist and her guide last week, the government said on Wednesday.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - Kimberley Sue Endecott, 35, and local guide Jean Paul Mirenge-Remezo were ambushed and seized by gunmen as they drove in Queen Elizabeth National Park in southwest Uganda on April 2.
The kidnappers demanded a ransom of $500,000 and the pair were released six days later.
Confirming the arrests on a government Twitter account, spokesman Ofwono Opondo said he hoped they would help break a larger criminal network in Uganda and neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. Ugandan police had announced arrests on Tuesday, but not given the number.
The firm that organized Endecott’s safari said she and her guide were released after a “negotiated settlement” and a Ugandan official also said a ransom was paid.
But Opondo contradicted that.
“The policy of the (government of Uganda) is that we don’t pay ransom. What you have been hearing is just rumor-mongering,” he said.
Given the importance of income from tourism, President Yoweri Museveni’s government was eager to solve the case and restore a feeling of safety in national parks.
Source: Reuters
Your Comment