http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/15/AR2008121503147.html By William Booth Washington Post Foreign Service December 16, 2008 MEXICO CITY, Dec. 15 -- An American anti-kidnapping negotiator, whose company says he has resolved almost 100 kidnapping cases in Latin America, was abducted by gunmen last week -- while meeting with Mexican business executives and their bodyguards to discuss ways to thwart such crimes. The abduction of Felix Batista was bold and chilling, and the report of his disappearance, which hit the news media here Monday morning, had Mexicans wondering whether anyone was safe. "This kidnapping is as serious as any other kidnapping in Mexico, where, according to official statistics, two people are kidnapped very day," said María Elena Morera, president of Mexicans United Against Crime. Independent watchdog groups in Mexico estimate that there are as many as 500 kidnappings a month in the country, most never reported because families choose to privately negotiate ransoms without help from police officers, who are often involved in kidnapping crews. According to his employers, Batista, who is based in Miami, is a longtime "response consultant" with more than 20 years in the kidnapping and ransom business, or "K&R," as global security firms commonly call it. [...] _______________________________________________ Help InfoSecNews.org with a donation! http://www.infosecnews.org/donate.htmlReceived on Mon Dec 15 2008 - 23:31:43 PST
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