British businessman Colin Armstrong ‘kidnapped from home in Ecuador after 15 criminals ransacked his estate’
A BRITISH businessman has reportedly been kidnapped in Ecuador after “15 criminals ransacked his estate”.
Colin Armstrong, 78, was reportedly snatched in the early hours of this morning in Baba, Los Rios province.
Mr Armstrong – who is also head of the British Consulate in the city of Guayaquil – was held with a Colombian woman.
She is believed to be his wife and named locally as Katherine Paola Santos.
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.
The Foreign Office said they were in contact with authorities in the South American nation following the disappearance of a British man.
The did not confirm his identity or the location of the potential crime.
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.”
Mr Armstrong is the founder of a large firm in Ecuador called Agripac that produces, distributes and sells agricultural and industrial supplies.
He is also the owner of Tupgill Park Estate in North Yorkshire, which was his childhood home.
It features a famous labyrinth of tunnels, chambers and follies known as Forbidden Corner, which claims to be “the strangest place in the world”.
The 78-year-old was awarded an OBE and CMG for services to the Royal Family in 2011.