A big military and police search for Liverpool star Luis Diaz’s father is underway in Colombia, with authorities offering a £40,000 reward for information leading to his rescue.
On Sunday, more than 120 troops and police scoured northern Colombia for Luis Manuel Diaz, who was reported kidnapped together with his wife by armed men.
Cilenis Marulanda, the player’s mother, was discovered in Barrancas on Saturday.
Diaz was not in the Liverpool squad that defeated Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
The army stated in a statement that it had set up barricades and dispatched two motorized platoons, unmanned aircraft, helicopters, and a radar-equipped plane in the search for his father.
Colombian authorities have not revealed specifics on the claimed kidnapping, but local media said that Diaz’s mother and father were abducted at a petrol station in Barrancas, their hometown in La Guajira, the country’s northern province, by armed men on motorcycles.
President Gustavo Petro of Colombia stated that “all public forces have been deployed” to discover Diaz’s father.
General William Rene Salamanca, director of the National Police, announced a reward of “up to 200 million pesos” (about £40,000) for information on Sunday.
Attorney General Francisco Barbosa said he had called Diaz twice to keep him up to date on the probe.
Barbosa informed the player that evidence had been collected indicating that his father could be in Venezuela, a situation that, according to Barbosa, would necessitate President Petro’s assistance.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp dedicated their 3-0 Premier League victory against Nottingham Forest on Sunday to Diaz, saying they won “for our brother.”
After scoring Liverpool’s first goal, Diogo Jota hoisted up the Colombian player’s number seven shirt in front of his teammates.
Before Sunday’s game, the club stated that they were “aware of an ongoing situation” involving Diaz’s family, and that the player’s wellbeing “will continue to be our immediate priority.”
