Anti-kidnapping consultant kidnapped in Mexico

[Lazie]

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (CNN) -- An American anti-kidnapping consultant was kidnapped in Mexico, according to the Houston-based security firm he works for.
Felix Batista was abducted outside a restaurant December 10 in Saltillo, the capital of Mexico's Coahuila state, the firm said.
The former U.S. military officer is a contract consultant for ASI Global LLC and was in Mexico "on personal business," ASI Global President Charlie LeBlanc told CNN.
He said the FBI is investigating the incident along with Mexican authorities.
Kidnappings and violence reached record levels in Mexico this year.
Attorney General Eduardo Medina Mora said this month that organized-crime killings soared to 5,376 in 2008, more than double the 2,477 deaths in Mexico in 2007.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon met over the summer with the country's 32 governors to unveil a plan to combat the nation's staggering rise in kidnappings.
The plan includes building special prisons for kidnappers, bolstering the justice system, cleaning up corrupt police forces and clamping down on kidnapping tools such as prepaid cell phones and money-laundering.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americ...ing/index.html

[Lazie]

Well, him can change him title from consultant to expert. When him talk bout experience, him really mean it. Then again, he may well have to change to another field. Who would hire this consultant now?

[Peter R]

Well...he could just drop the "Anti" from his title too.That would work.

[Lazie]

Kidnapped security expert's family ends silence

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- Felix Batista disappeared December 10 from a restaurant in Mexico -- a case that made international headlines because of its irony. The anti-kidnapping expert was kidnapped, authorities said, and no one has heard from him since.


Anti-kidnapping expert Felix Batista has been missing nearly a month. He's believed to have been abducted.

Batista's family members, who live in Miami, Florida, have not heard from him or his kidnappers. There have been no demands for ransom. No contact at all.

"We don't make anything of that. We just want to know his whereabouts as soon as possible," said his sister, Jackie Batista.

Batista, an internationally known American security consultant, has successfully negotiated the release of kidnapping victims throughout Latin America.

"He's always been a professional at what he does," his sister said.

He arrived December 6 in Saltillo, Mexico, about 250 miles south of the U.S. border, to take part in a security seminar about kidnappings.

The FBI has been working with Mexican law enforcement to determine what happened, and to bring Batista home safely. The U.S. embassy in Mexico has not returned CNN's calls, nor has Mexico's Ministry of the Interior. The FBI won't officially confirm it is working on the case.

The Batista family, however, is talking. Family members will make a public appeal in Miami later today.

"We just want to get some news and would like to make a public plea, and in return, we hope to get some answers," Jackie Batista told CNN in a telephone interview.

Batista was in a restaurant with several other people when he received a phone call, according to a written statement released by the state attorney general's office in Saltillo.

After speaking on the telephone, he told his colleagues that several people in a white pickup truck were going to give him a message, said the statement. He got into a vehicle which did not match the description he had given his colleagues. Since then, no one has had any communication with him.

The statement said there was no sign of violence at the scene.

"The fact that he was purposely picked up, and they haven't reached out to family is certainly worrisome", said Gary Noesner, the former chief of the FBI crisis negotiation unit who now works as a security and kidnapping consultant.

"Typically you would get contact sooner, but sometimes kidnappers wait a period of time. They use that as a pressure tactic," Noesner added. "I would have thought they would have had contact by now."

He added, "The family wants to be contacted. There is a bit of a good news story if they are contacted, because that opens up a dialogue -- and that is a recipe for a resolution."

Mexico has seen an alarming rise in kidnappings and violence. Organized crime and drug related killings more than doubled from 2007 to 2008.

President Felipe Calderon met over the summer with the country's 32 governors to unveil a plan to combat the increase in kidnappings. The plan includes building special prisons for kidnappers. And, a constitutional amendment to reinstate the death penalty for kidnappers who kill their captives has been sent to Mexico's legislature.

Experts believe that people in Mexico who have relatives in the United States are specifically being targeted because it's assumed they have money.

"What kidnappers basically do, is look at who has money that we can get", said Noesner, the security consultant. "They will go after anyone who they perceive will provide a payoff."

Felix Batista worked as a retained consultant for ASI Global LLC, a global kidnap and ransom response company, for 18 months.

"He is an extremely gifted and talented consultant and has worked in the region for many, many years," said company President Charlie LeBlanc.

Since Batista's kidnapping, the company has had representatives with the Batista family to help them through the crisis, he said.

"The fact that we have not had contact is not necessarily a bad sign. We've had cases in the past that have gone much longer without contact," he said.

But almost a month has passed since Batista's disappearance and that is not a good sign, the experts cautioned.

"It becomes more problematic when there's not contact from the bad guys. You're very limited as to what you can do," Noesner said.

"Its far too early to say, 'This is typical,' but I'd be concerned," he added.

But perhaps the Batista family can find some solace in the words of Felix Batista himself. In an interview with TV Azteca, a CNN affiliate based in Mexico City, he offered some advice to the families and loved ones of a kidnapping victims.

"Stay calm and ask them [the kidnappers] for time. Time to do two things -- to look for the missing person if possible, and confirm that it is in fact a kidnapping."