Daugther makes tearful plea for Brit millionaire dad abducted in Ecuador

18 December 2023 , 22:38

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Colin Armstrong who has been kidnapped in Ecuador (Image: GERARD COUZENS)

The daughter of a millionaire British businessman who has been abducted by gangsters in Ecuador has made a tearful plea for information.

Colin Armstrong, former honorary consul of the United Kingdom in Guayaquil, was abducted in the early hours of Saturday from a farm he owned, Ecuadorian police confirmed. A video said to show signs of forced entry, along with traces of blood and ransacked rooms, is understood to be circulating on social media.

According to local media in Ecuador, Colin was kidnapped at dawn on Saturday at a farm he owned in Baba in Los Rios province. As many as 15 men entered the property dressed as police officers and took him away, reports suggested. It was also reported that a Colombian woman, Katherine Paola Santos, who was believed to be Mr Armstrong's partner, was kidnapped at the same time. The honorary consul’s car, a black BMW the kidnap victims are said to have been driven away in, has reportedly been found abandoned on the road between Baba and the nearby town of Salitre. One unconfirmed local report said the men who took the couple were wearing police uniforms.

Mr Armstrong was kidnapped on Saturday

Colin’s daughter Diana Armstrong-Bruns told MailOnline from California: "This is a critical time, we’ve been told not to say anything to anyone. We just want my father back." His son Nick Armstrong, who helps run the family estate in the UK, has reportedly flown to help authorities with the search for his father who has not been seen or heard from since his abduction.

The pair are directors of the 500-acre Tupgill Park Estate near Leyburn in north Yorkshire, which has been the family home for more than 45 years. Colin is the founder and owner of Agripac, a large agricultural products company in Ecuador. He left the role of honorary consul in 2016 and was replaced by his sons. He was awarded an OBE and CMG in 2011.

Ecuador's banana boom turns sour as cocaine traffickers threaten peace

Kidnappings for ransom have become increasingly common in Ecuador as surging violent crime has transformed the country from among the safest in Latin America to the most dangerous in just five years, according to a 2022 Gallup poll. An FCDO spokesperson said: "We are in contact with the Ecuadorean authorities following the disappearance of a British man and are supporting his family."

Gerard Couzens