Emotional scenes as Luis Diaz Sr. reunited with family – kidnapping details revealed 

Emotional scenes as Luis Diaz Sr. reunited with family – kidnapping details revealed

Luis Manuel Diaz was reunited with his wife and family on Thursday following 13 days in captivity, as details of his kidnapping in Colombia begin to emerge.

 

Diaz Sr., the father of Liverpool winger Luis Diaz, was kidnapped along with his wife, Cilenis Marulanda, on Saturday, October 28, in their hometown of Barrancas.

Marulanda was rescued swiftly but Diaz Sr. spent almost two weeks in the hands of the ELN, a guerrilla group recognised as terrorists, before his release on Thursday.

The news came shortly before kickoff in Diaz’s first start for Liverpool since the ordeal began, while back in Colombia, his father was escorted to his family.

Greeted by a large crowd, Diaz Sr. embraced those waiting for him, including his wife of over 30 years. I

want to thank God for this second chance,” he told those waiting at the Alfonso Lopez Pumarejo airport.

“Thank you to all the people of Barranco, thank you all, I love you very much. I will soon have the opportunity to greet you, thank you very much.”

In details reported by Colombian outlet Semana, it was revealed that Diaz Sr. fell off the motorbike on which he was initially abducted.

 

Further reports claim that the winger’s father was forced to ride a horse which left him “battered.”

 

Monsignor Francisco Ceballos, who was among a delegation from the Catholic Church which greeted Diaz Sr., explained that he was “walking for six days day and night.”

 

“It’s a very emotional moment when you see a person who has been deprived of his liberty in front of you,” he said, in quotes carried by the Mirror.

I was the first person who saw him. I hugged him and he began to cry. He was very emotional and very tired because of the long walks he had to do.

 

“He told me he had to walk continuously for two days plus another four days when he was kidnapped.

 

“Of the 13 days he was kidnapped he was walking for six days, day and night.”

 

Diaz Sr., who was initially set to be transported to Venezuela by his kidnappers, is now back home in Barrancas, with his son due to travel back to Colombia later this month.

Luis Manuel Diaz has spoken out on the ordeal of being held hostage for nearly two weeks, and revealed he spoke to his son, Luis Diaz, before Liverpool’s match vs. Toulouse.

 

The father of the Liverpool player spoke publicly for the first time on Friday after his release around 24 hours earlier, sharing that no money was requested by the ELN (Colombian National Liberation Army), the guerrilla group that were holding him.

Diaz Sr. revealed how he had the chance to speak to Luis shortly before the Reds’ Europa League match against Toulouse.

 

“I had the opportunity to greet him before he played a football match with his club,” the Colombian said.

 

“I was happy because I was already with my family, with my wife, with my son, with Luis’ mother-in-law, with Alejandro and with some people who accompanied us.

 

“[Luis told me] to keep going because things don’t end here and to have a lot of strength to recover from everything that has happened.”

Speaking on the events of the last two weeks, Diaz Sr. revealed he went nearly two weeks he went “almost 12 days without sleep.”

He continued: “Even though the treatment was good, I didn’t feel very comfortable. A lot of quite difficult horseback riding, lots of mountains, rain.

“I missed my things, my children, my town, my friends.”

Despite the terrifying events, Diaz Sr. insisted he would remain in his home town of Barrancas.

“My aspirations are to continue in my town because I have my entire family in my town,” he added.

The government has given me impressively strong and great support. I trust and have faith that it will provide me security to be in Barrancas.”

His son, Liverpool winger Luis will return to Colombia this week for international duty and be reunited with his father after shocking incidents they have endured.