Suspects accused of kidnapping their boss, demanding ¢120 million ransom

October 27^th, 2014 (InsideCostaRica.com) Four Nicaraguan and one Costa Rican man were arrested Friday night on charges of kidnapping a Guápiles businessman and demanding a ¢120 million (~$226,000) ransom for his release.

According to information provided by the Judicial Investigative Police (OIJ), the victim was intercepted around 5 p.m. on Thursday in downtown Guápiles, when he was forced out of his car, bound, gagged, and forced into the kidnappers’ vehicle.

Shortly after the victim was abducted, the man’s brother received the demand for ransom.

The alleged kidnappers and the victim’s family later agreed to a ransom of ¢40 million, which they paid the suspects at a predetermined location in Heredia.  The suspects then told the family that the victim would be released near the hospital in Guapiles.

According to authorities, police were lying in wait around 10 p.m. Friday night at the location where the victim was to be released and were able to take two suspects into custody after the victim was released.

The other three suspects, who were in charge of collecting the ransom, were later taken into custody in Heredia.

Authorities said that all of the Nicaraguan suspects were undocumented.

The suspects apparently worked on a farm owned by the victim