Benghazi, 2 September:
Members of a gang suspected of being involved in the abduction of Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested by the . . .[restrict]Ahrar Libya Battalion in Benghazi. It is understood that the group kidnapped the men in order to demand a ransom for their release.
A security source said that the gang-members are also Bangladeshi, and the leader is a man called Ameer Taroon. He indicated that there were suspicions that abductees had been tortured at the farm from which the gang operates, in the Sidi Faraj area of Benghazi district.
He added that the gang had demanded LD 30,000 from the families of the abducted men, but, after negotiation, the ransom had been set at LD 6,000. The gang-members are now being held at the Bu-Atni National Security Directorate.
A spokesman for the Bangladeshi Embassy was unable to comment on this case specifically, but told the Libya Herald ”If they [Bangladeshi citizens] are involved in any criminal activity, we ask the Libyans to deport them. We don’t have any sympathy for that.” [/restrict]
