Australian police have issued an unusual public appeal, urging kidnappers to release an 80-year-old man they believe was taken by mistake. Authorities say three men kidnapped 80-year-old Chris Baghsarian from his home in North Ryde, a suburb north of Sydney, on Friday.
"I am 100% certain that the kidnappers took the wrong person," Andrew Marks, a police officer who heads the serious crime prosecution service, told the media. According to an ABC report, the perpetrators intended to kidnap a person connected to a criminal network in Sydney's west. However, the grandfather taken hostage "has no involvement" in the underworld, Marks stressed.
"This is not a case where someone is kidnapped randomly. The kidnappers were targeting a specific person, but they made a mistake," he explained, admitting that the public demand for the hostage's release was "very strange."
At the time of the abduction, the victim was wearing grey pyjamas and a red and green flannel shirt. Police say he requires daily medical attention. It is also reported that videos and photographs of Mr Baghsarian, injured, are circulating in Sydney underworld circles. While family members are shocked by the incident, Mr Marks tried to calm the public, stressing that despite the “disturbing” mistake, residents with elderly parents or grandparents “have no reason to worry”.
