Colombia’s army line the border to Venezuela amid fears Liverpool star Luis Diaz’s father will be smuggled out of the country through a jungle, as new details of his kidnapping emerge
- A huge search operation for Luis Manuel Diaz is underway in Colombia
- Armed men kidnapped Diaz’s parents but his mother was freed by police
- Follow Mail Sport’s new Liverpool WhatsApp channel for all the breaking news
Border crossings between Colombia and Venezuela located inside dense jungle are being monitored by army commandos in the search for the kidnapped father of Liverpool star Luis Diaz.
Armed men kidnapped Diaz’s parents in Barrancas, Colombia and while his mother was later freed, his father remains missing with a huge search mission underway.
Diaz was informed of the kidnapping while at Liverpool’s team hotel on Saturday evening ahead of their Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Sunday.
The 26-year-old left the squad with members of Liverpool’s staff taking care of him. Diogo Jota dedicated his goal in Liverpool’s 3-0 win to Diaz by lifting his No 7 shirt aloft, to applause from the crowd.
Reports by Semana in Colombia say a vast rescue operation for Luis Manuel Diaz is ongoing featuring over 130 personnel from the police and armed forces, including jungle commandos.
The search for Luis Manuel Diaz, the father of Liverpool and Colombia forward Luis Diaz, continues with authorities monitoring jungle regions near the border with Venezuela
A reward of around £40,000 has been offered for information about the kidnapping
Liverpool star Luis Diaz was informed about the kidnapping on Saturday evening
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Three Black Hawk helicopters and an Aerospace Force plane are combing jungle regions near the Serrania del Perija mountains, close to the Venezuela border.
Semana said the police are not ruling out the possibility Diaz’s father may already be inside Venezuela even though the crossing through thick jungle will have been hazardous.
Police director General William Salamanca told the newspaper: ‘About that [being in Venezuela], I cannot give any information, I want to be very cautious.
‘I flew over the area and they would have to cross the Perija mountain range, but I think that a human being cannot do it in that area.
‘We were trying to leave some commandos there and we couldn’t because of the denseness of the jungle.
‘Also since last night there has been a blockade that the army made in the lower part of the mountain range, which would be the exit to Venezuela.’
Semana said the search for Diaz’s father has reached a point of ‘stagnation’ with the authorities waiting for the demands of his captors.
The report said Luis Manuel and his wife Cilenis Marulanda were buying watermelons when they were taken by four armed men on motorcycles.
The star’s mother (pictured in 2019) has been rescued, but his father is believed to be still being held captive, with authorities continuing the search
A video which surfaced in Colombia showed Diaz’s mother being reunited with her family
After the police enacted a ‘padlock’ operation to find the couple, they assailants reportedly abandoned Diaz’s stolen car and continued on three motorcycles, two of which were taken from civilians.
Diaz’s mother was freed from her ordeal with a reward of 200 million Colombian pesos [around £40,000] offered by the authorities for information.
The Colombian football association posted on their Instagram account: ‘We ask the captors of Luis Manuel Diaz, father of Luis Diaz, to release him now, without conditions. Football is peace. Lucho, we are with you. Colombia is with you.’
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said preparing for Sunday’s match was the most difficult task he has had to do in his career.
‘The preparation was the most difficult I ever had in my life. Didn’t expect it, was not prepared for it. I don’t want to make the game bigger than it was but it was,’ Klopp said.
‘Most definitely we try to help Lucho with the fight we put in because obviously we want to help. We cannot really help so the only thing we can really do is fight for him and that’s what the boys did.
Jurgen Klopp said preparing for this match was the most difficult task he has had to do
‘We heard late last night. Then we spoke to Lucho. He wanted to go home. Sent people with him, had people there to take care. There is part of his family there as well. It’s why they want to be together. It’s absolutely understandable.
‘Then we got the news about his mum which is absolutely fantastic. Since then, nothing really.
‘They are working on it but it’s some distance away. We are obviously not the first people that get informed but we try to get knowledge of everything, but we do not want to disturb.’
Diogo Jota dedicated his goal to Diaz by lifting his No 7 shirt aloft, and Klopp added: ‘How can you make a football game seem really important on a day like this? It’s really difficult. I never struggled with that in my life.
‘It was always my safe place, sometimes my hiding point as a player or as a coach.
Diaz remains in the thoughts of his team-mates as they won 3-0 without him on Sunday
Diaz’ shirt was held up by Diogo Jota and was met by applause at Anfield during Forest clash
‘You are allowed, during these 90-odd minutes, to focus just on that. And it was impossible, absolutely impossible to do that.
‘So it was clear we had to give the game an extra sense and it was fighting for Lucho. Then the boys pulled out the shirt and I was not 100 per cent prepared for that to be honest. It was really touching, but wonderful as well.’
Jota added: ‘Luis was with us in the hotel then he went home. It’s a very hard situation and I don’t know how anyone would react if it happened to you.
‘He was going to play. I played instead of him and I showed him his shirt to show we’re with him and we hope everything works out.
‘It’s unimaginable to think a situation like this could happen. We can just support him and show him we’re with him.’
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