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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Canadian woman freed in Nigeria | Canadian woman freed in Nigeria |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| A Canadian woman kidnapped two weeks ago in northern Nigeria has been released, Canadian officials have said. | A Canadian woman kidnapped two weeks ago in northern Nigeria has been released, Canadian officials have said. |
| Julie Mulligan, 45, was on a cultural exchange with the charity Rotary International when she was seized from a car by gunmen in Kaduna on 16 April. | Julie Mulligan, 45, was on a cultural exchange with the charity Rotary International when she was seized from a car by gunmen in Kaduna on 16 April. |
| A spokesman for the Canadian Foreign Ministry said she was healthy and with embassy officials. | A spokesman for the Canadian Foreign Ministry said she was healthy and with embassy officials. |
| On Wednesday, the police at first said she had been released, before later saying she was still being held. | On Wednesday, the police at first said she had been released, before later saying she was still being held. |
| "We are greatly relieved to confirm that Ms Mulligan has been released and is now safe with Canadian officials. We are making sure that she receives consular assistance and is able to be reunited with her family as soon as possible," Alain Cacchione, a spokesman with Canada's Foreign Affairs Department, said in an e-mailed statement. | "We are greatly relieved to confirm that Ms Mulligan has been released and is now safe with Canadian officials. We are making sure that she receives consular assistance and is able to be reunited with her family as soon as possible," Alain Cacchione, a spokesman with Canada's Foreign Affairs Department, said in an e-mailed statement. |
| 'Keystone kidnappers?' | 'Keystone kidnappers?' |
| Details about her release are sketchy, but a Rotary International source told the BBC she had been released by the kidnappers because they were not getting anywhere with the ransom, and were spending too much money holding her. | Details about her release are sketchy, but a Rotary International source told the BBC she had been released by the kidnappers because they were not getting anywhere with the ransom, and were spending too much money holding her. |
| She was found by the side of the road in a village south of the city "looking bewildered". | She was found by the side of the road in a village south of the city "looking bewildered". |
| "The village she was in had been told to be on the look out for her, so when she was found, news spread like wildfire," the Rotary member said. | "The village she was in had been told to be on the look out for her, so when she was found, news spread like wildfire," the Rotary member said. |
| It is believed that the State Security Service knew where she was, but did not want to try and rescue her in case she was injured, he added. | It is believed that the State Security Service knew where she was, but did not want to try and rescue her in case she was injured, he added. |
| Delta connection? | Delta connection? |
| The kidnappers are still at large. | The kidnappers are still at large. |
| It is the first time a foreign woman has been kidnapped and held for ransom in Nigeria outside the restive oil-producing Niger Delta region. | It is the first time a foreign woman has been kidnapped and held for ransom in Nigeria outside the restive oil-producing Niger Delta region. |
| The security services are believed to be investigating whether the kidnap gang ringleader is from the Niger Delta, sources close to the situation said. | The security services are believed to be investigating whether the kidnap gang ringleader is from the Niger Delta, sources close to the situation said. |
| Ms Mulligan, a financial services consultant from Alberta, was travelling from a meeting with a friend when gunmen stopped their car and seized her. | Ms Mulligan, a financial services consultant from Alberta, was travelling from a meeting with a friend when gunmen stopped their car and seized her. |
| Health fears | Health fears |
| The kidnappers had said Ms Mulligan was sick. | The kidnappers had said Ms Mulligan was sick. |
| She had spoken to journalists on the phone since her kidnap and said she was afraid of getting malaria. | She had spoken to journalists on the phone since her kidnap and said she was afraid of getting malaria. |
| Local media reported her kidnappers had demanded 20m naira ($135,823; £92,000) to release her. | Local media reported her kidnappers had demanded 20m naira ($135,823; £92,000) to release her. |
| Kidnappings for ransom are common in the southern Niger Delta, where militants and street gangs target wealthy Nigerians and foreign oil workers. | Kidnappings for ransom are common in the southern Niger Delta, where militants and street gangs target wealthy Nigerians and foreign oil workers. |