Body found in Ecuador may be kidnap victim’s

THE family of an Irish oil worker kidnapped in Ecuador were last night awaiting the formal identification of two bodies reported found in the region where he was taken.

Nothing has been heard of John Buckley, 60, of Kilmucklin, Clara, Co Offaly, and his driver, Luis Diaz, since they were seized in a jungle area south of the capital Quito last October.

Mr Buckley, who lived in Britain with his wife and daughter, was travelling on a British passport. The British Foreign Office was yesterday investigating reports that police in Ecuador had found the remains of a westerner and a local man fitting the descriptions of Mr Buckley and Mr Diaz.

Foreign Office officials said last night the reports stated the bodies had been found in the El Chaco area, about 160 miles from where Mr Buckley was last seen, but details were sparse.

Mr Buckley, who previously worked in the US, was an employee of the Argentinian exploration and production group Techint, and was overseeing the laying of an oil pipeline when he and his driver were kidnapped on October 2 last.

It is thought they were taken by members of a Colombian guerrilla group which has been active in the region for over a decade, using the difficult terrain between the countries to slip over the border and target westerners.

Initially the kidnappers stayed in contact with the Ecuadorian authorities and demanded money for Mr Buckley’s return, but a ransom paid by Techint failed to secure his release.

The size of the ransom was undisclosed, but some reports put it as high as $2 million. Techint subsequently offered an award of $40,000 for information leading to his rescue, and members of Mr Buckley’s family travelled to Ecuador to appeal for help in finding him, but the trail ran dry.

At least ten westerners, mainly US citizens, have been kidnapped by Colombian-led bandit groups in Ecuador since 1994, but most were released on payment of ransoms, while one escaped and another was shot when release negotiations failed.