CAIRO: A Saudi businessman, freed here Thursday after being held by kidnappers for 11 days, was let go by his abductors as the Egyptian police started closing in on them, according to reports Friday.
Hassan Ali Ahmed Al-Sanad, 70, was kidnapped by masked assailants on April 26 on the Cairo-Ismailia Desert Road.
He was in Cairo to take part in meetings of his firm’s board and was on his way to Cairo International Airport. The kidnappers had reportedly told his family that they would only release him for SR2 million.
Major. Gen. Majdi Abdelaal, head of the Suez Police, confirmed the businessman was set free on the Suez-Cairo Highway.
It was likely that the kidnappers had felt the police were closing in on them, a local publication quoted him as saying Friday.
Abdelaal said Al-Sanad had been kept in an apartment in the Hajooul Valley area. Egyptian police officers were now combing the area to find the criminals. It is suspected that the kidnappers are members of a gang specializing in such activities, he said.
The Egyptian police had reportedly been closing in on the kidnappers by tracing mobile phone calls made in the area.
Al-Sanad reportedly said that he has given the police detailed information about his kidnappers, with police artists drawing up identikits of the men involved.
Al-Sanad’s employees at his factory in Cairo have welcomed his release.
Mohammad Faraj, a worker, said that Al-Sanad was well liked and known for being a moral and principled man, with many wanting to help him expand his business.
A businesswoman who operates an enterprise next to his factory reportedly said that she was happy to see him freed. He had been investing his money in the region, benefiting the local community, she said.
She urged the authorities to improve policing in the area.
Hassan Ali Ahmed Al-Sanad, 70, was kidnapped by masked assailants on April 26 on the Cairo-Ismailia Desert Road.
He was in Cairo to take part in meetings of his firm’s board and was on his way to Cairo International Airport. The kidnappers had reportedly told his family that they would only release him for SR2 million.
Major. Gen. Majdi Abdelaal, head of the Suez Police, confirmed the businessman was set free on the Suez-Cairo Highway.
It was likely that the kidnappers had felt the police were closing in on them, a local publication quoted him as saying Friday.
Abdelaal said Al-Sanad had been kept in an apartment in the Hajooul Valley area. Egyptian police officers were now combing the area to find the criminals. It is suspected that the kidnappers are members of a gang specializing in such activities, he said.
The Egyptian police had reportedly been closing in on the kidnappers by tracing mobile phone calls made in the area.
Al-Sanad reportedly said that he has given the police detailed information about his kidnappers, with police artists drawing up identikits of the men involved.
Al-Sanad’s employees at his factory in Cairo have welcomed his release.
Mohammad Faraj, a worker, said that Al-Sanad was well liked and known for being a moral and principled man, with many wanting to help him expand his business.
A businesswoman who operates an enterprise next to his factory reportedly said that she was happy to see him freed. He had been investing his money in the region, benefiting the local community, she said.
She urged the authorities to improve policing in the area.
