Nigeria Daily News: Abducted Spanish doctor regains freedom

Abducted Spanish doctor regains freedom
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Staff on 21/04/2012 22:52:00


By TONY EDIKE
SPANISH Medical Doctor, Joe Machimbarrena, who was abducted from his Enugu
residence on April 4, regained his freedom Friday night.
The Spaniard, according to a statement by the state police spokesman, Mr. Ebere
Amaraizu, was sited around Thinkers Corner axis of the Enugu Capital City at
about 9.35 pm Friday, adding that he was hale and hearty – Machimbarrena
works with the Catholic Church-owned Niger Foundation Hospital in Enugu.
The spokesman stated that the abductors of the expatriate doctor set him free
and dropped him at Tinkers Corner but he did not say if the ransom they
reportedly demanded as a condition for his release was paid.
”The kidnapped Dr Joe Machimbarrena, a Spaniard with the Niger foundation
Hospital located in Enugu State has been released yesterday by his captors. Dr.
Joe was still looking good, hale and hearty when he was seen yesterday.  He was
said to have been sited around Thinkers Corner axis of the state on April 20,
2012 at about 9.35 pm.  Meanwhile, Dr. Joe has reunited with his hospital
community,” the police spokesman said.
The hospital community on their own part, he further stated, had thanked all the
relevant security agencies in the state for all their efforts in the aggressive
search to get back Dr. Machimbarrena who was described as almost a Nigerian
because of his length of stay in Enugu.
The Hospital statement added: “The church also thanked members of the public
and all the relevant stake holders as well as all the media outfits for the
awareness created which had made his captors to change their mind while giving
the Almighty God all the Glory for his safety throughout the duration of his
stay in the hands of the abductors.”
The police and other security agencies had carried out intensive search for the
doctor while in captivity but their efforts yielded no dividends as his
abductors were said to have adopted a difficult tactics that made it difficult
for the security agencies to track them.
The 58-year-old Dr Joe Machimbarrena who is the Clinical Services Director of
Niger Foundation Hospital, Enugu, has lived in the Coal City since 1978.
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