E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSS
APTN
Kathryn Cox, left, and Fiona Louise Wilde were abducted as they travelled by canoe through the Cuyabeno nature reserve in the Tarapoa region of Ecuador.
Two female tourists were kidnapped while visiting a nature reserve in north-eastern Ecuador near the border with Colombia, but were released after two days, authorities said Monday.
Kathryn Sara Cox, 23, who is British, and an Australian identified in local media as 32-year-old Fiona Louise Wilde, were seized on Friday by what Ecuadorean authorities said was a Colombian group, according to a BBC report.
Ecuador's interior minister Jose Serrano said the two were rescued Sunday night by police and armed forces.
Read more on this story at ITV News
Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said the safety of Cox was now "top priority" as U.K. and Ecuadorian authorities worked together to find who was responsible.
Two female tourists are free after being kidnapped in Ecuador near the Colombian border and spending two days with captors in the jungle. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
An FCO spokesman said:
"We are very pleased to be able to confirm that Kathryn Sara Cox, who was kidnapped in a remote part of Sucumbios province, Ecuador, on Friday has been found today. She, along with an Australian national, was found following an intensive search of the area by the police and military. She is now in the care of Ecuadorian and U.K. officials, and her health and safety is our top priority. We are giving full consular assistance to both her and her family."
The incident took place as the women traveled by canoe as part of a tour group in the Cuyabeno nature reserve in the Tarapoa region of Sucumbios province, in the north east of Ecuador close to the border with Colombia, the BBC said.
Officials in Ecuador are searching for suspected arsonists behind the devastating wildfires that have burned thousands of acres of farmland. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
It reported they were part of a group made up of several foreign tourists and two Ecuadorean guides. Local reports suggested a criminal gang called the Black Eagles, made up of ex-paramilitaries, might have been behind the abduction, according to the BBC.
Australia’s Herald Sun newspaper quoted Wilde as saying:
"We were very scared. We could often hear the helicopters above us and that was very comforting while we were in the jungle. When the helicopters got right above us, the kidnappers made us hide under bushes and they got scared and they were, we think, close to maybe nearly killing us. For some reason they changed their mind and told us to run and we ran out towards the helicopters, yelling and trying to get their attention.”
The U.S. State Department does not warn against travel in that part of Ecuador, but noted that at least four U.S. citizens have been murdered in Ecuador since 2009.
ITV News is the UK partner of NBC News
More world stories from NBC News:
- Israelis are prepared — or not — for an Iran attack
- Colonial sins return to haunt former world powers
- Experts: Four leopards being killed each week for skins in India
- Trial of pope's ex-butler over leaked papers begins
- 'Lady whisperer': Cabbie snaps topless female passengers
- After decades in exile, Libyan president ready to die for democracy
- Amid Syria's civil war violence, a strange calm in the capital
- Royal censorship? BBC 'sorry' for daring to report queen's comments
- Stay informed: Sign up for our newsletter
Follow World News from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook
Leave a Comment:
I suppose someone at State is required to post things like"... does not warn against travel in that part of Ecuador, but noted that at least four U.S. citizens have been murdered in Ecuador since 2009".
How many U.S. citizens have been murdered in the U.S. since 2009?
Really, now....
Ecuador is a fantastic place. Well worth visiting. And much, much safer than Mexico.
Yea!!!! I'm so glad you gals are safe. You will have a whopper of a story to tell your loved one's when you get home. I can already see you two at a much older age as a grandmother telling your grand kids your experience on your vacation in Ecuador.
Thanks rebels, for letting these wonderful innocent gals go. Thank you officials in Ecuador on finding these gals.
...
I thought, wow, Jesse did it again.
Then I saw the picture of the two young ladies.
The picture definitely said - " Jesse was not involved ".
...
Unnecessary drama. There are lots of other places to go canoeing. Holy living Christ!
I'm glad these two lesbians are safe.
Tim.... lol thats what I was thinking.
Did they not have any presentable clothes for the interview?
They were kidnapped and held captive in the jungle, they're not going to come out ready for the red carpet.
what the hell were they doing in 29th world country like Ecuador, for land sakes, go to place that ´s much safer, like botswanna, and enjoy life......you dumb friks.
I must sadly agree, I am glad they're out and safe now but it reminds me of those people who went hiking on the Iraq/Iran border and ended up grabbed by Iranians and put in Jail in Iran. Glad they got out but what were they thinking? Hiking near Iran?
They are young and adventurous.They had a guide and were on a tour so they felt it was safe.They aren't at fault.the kidnappers and the tour guide were at fault here.
I swear - every time I go to Ecuador I get kidnapped. Every time. The last time I was there I got kidnapped on the way from my hotel room to the ice machine. Then there was the McDonald's rest room. Before that it was while changing money at the airport. You just have to get used to being kidnapped all day & it's ok.
I'm glad that they are safe.Ecuador has never been on my list of must see countries.
This is very bad reporting.. I just wanted to know if they got gangf##ked,, thats all or at least fingerf##ked like lara logan
The best thing in Ecuador is you can pee at any time and anywhere toward any direction. No need to look for the restroom.
I'd like to live in Ecuador when I retire.
I wonder if they will come back with a souvenir pregnancy?