CARACAS, Venezuela – Venezuelan authorities said Friday they are confident they can quickly solve the kidnapping of Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos.
The abduction on Wednesday was the first known kidnapping of a major leaguer in a country that has scores of players on big league rosters, and it has brought a renewed focus on rising violent crime in Venezuela.
Deputy Justice Minister Edwin Rojas said investigators are making progress in gathering evidence and have physical descriptions of the kidnappers based on the accounts of witnesses.
“We have faith in the quick resolution of this case,” Rojas told state television. He said President Hugo Chavez’s government “is working 24 hours a day to solve this case.”
Armed men seized Ramos at gunpoint Wednesday outside his home in a working-class neighborhood in the city of Valencia. Authorities said Thursday that they had found a stolen SUV used by the kidnappers abandoned in a nearby town. Police spread out searching for clues in the area.
Venezuelan security expert Luis Cedeno said Ramos’ abductors probably belong to one of the country’s highly organized criminal groups that focus on high-profile kidnappings, and are likely to demand a large ransom.
“It’s a very sophisticated, well-planned kidnapping,” said Cedeno, who leads the
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