Kidnappers contact family of abducted Lankan in Nigeria

A Sri Lankan national abducted during a brazen kidnapping operation at the boundary of Ondo and Kogi States, is now being held till a ransom is paid, Nigerian media reported. The man, identified by Sri Lankan embassy staff as Karuna Ratna, worked for an Italian-owned construction company and has lived in Nigeria for more than 10 years, reports claimed. Nigerian media , Sahara Reporters correspondent gathered that Ratna was on his way to a "construction deal" at the Kogi and Ondo boundary when he was abducted. Sahara Reporters correspondent gathered that the kidnappers have been demanding a huge ransom before he could be released, but officials could not confirm the amount. A source working at the Sri Lanka embassy told Sahara Reporters on Wednesday that the kidnappers have been in communication with Ratna's family. "The kidnappers have phoned his family and are demanding huge sum of amount before he would freed." An embassy official told Sahara Reporters that "he is in good physical health, but under a lot of mental stress." Every possible effort is being taken to ensure the release of the Sri Lankan kidnapped by gunmen in Nigeria, Deputy Foreign Minister Ajith P. Perera told local media.