US kidnap negotiator abducted in Mexico

A US SECURITY consultant who negotiated the release of dozens of kidnap victims in Latin America has himself been kidnapped by masked gunmen in northern Mexico.

The gunmen abducted Felix Batista outside a restaurant last Wednesday in the relatively safe industrial city of Saltillo in Coahuila state, Mexican authorities and his employer, security consultancy ASI Global, revealed yesterday.

Batista, a Miami-based Cuban-American credited with negotiating the release of people abducted by Colombian rebels, was kidnapped after he stepped outside the restaurant while answering a call on his mobile phone, Mexican media said.