Photo Credit: Getty Images
The family of Jackson Rodríguez is secure. Local police officials told ESPN on April 25 that the Ecuadorian soccer player's wife and 5-year-old child had been released from their Guayaquil home, which had been invaded in the early hours of the morning on April 23.
Club Sport Emelec, Rodríguez's soccer team, also issued a statement confirming the people's safety.
The statement shared to X on April 24 read, "We are thankful for the successful investigative and operational work of the national police, which resulted in the release of his loved ones, who were kidnapped in the early hours of Wednesday, April 23." "The two victims are unharmed. Club Sport Emelec requests that family privacy be respected at this time.”
Pablo Dávila, the police commander, told CBS that Rodríguez's wife and child were "safe" and had received medical care upon their rescue. He added that the family refused to pay the $50,000 the kidnappers demanded in exchange for the victims' release.
At approximately 3:30 a.m. on April 23, Rodríguez's wife, 24, and child were kidnapped. According to the Associated Press, Rodríguez, 26, told police in a statement that he had hidden under a bed in their home when he heard their door being broken.
He added that he overheard the intruders asking his wife if he was inside the house while they were driving in a gray double-cab pickup truck.
According to CBS, seven of Ecuador's 24 provinces, including Guayas, where Guayaquil is located, are currently under a state of emergency, which was imposed just ten days prior to Rodríguez's home invasion. According to the outlet, the nation stated that fighting the "dramatic rise" in drug-related violence was essential.
The South American nation's president, Daniel Noboa, said the action was required because Ecuador has experienced the bloodiest year on record, with an average of one murder every hour, according to CBS.
The measure was enforced in response to the "increase in violence, serious crime, and the intense unlawful activities of organized armed groups," as stated by Noboa, who was reelected on April 13.
