The parents of Liverpool forward Luis Diaz were kidnapped in Colombia after being stopped by gunmen on motorbikes, national authorities have confirmed.
Diaz's mother, Cilenis Marulanda, has since been rescued but his father remains missing, with the Colombian army drafted in to aid in the search.
"In a padlock operation in Barrancas, Luis Diaz's mother has been rescued, we continue the search for the father," Colombian president Gustavo Petro confirmed on social media.
The Colombian attorney general's office added in a statement: "From the moment when Colombia's General Prosecutor's Office learned of the kidnapping of the parents of Colombian player Luis Diaz in the Barrancas area of La Guajira, a specialist team of prosecutors, CTI (Technical Investigation Team) officials and investigators from the police and military have been taking urgent action to locate these individuals, clarify the chain of events and identify the culprits."
Liverpool are in action on Sunday against Nottingham Forest but the Reds have confirmed their current priority is offering any assistance they can to Diaz.
"It is our fervent hope that the matter is resolved safely and at the earliest possible opportunity," Liverpool said. "In the meantime, the player's welfare will continue to be our immediate priority."
Colombia's footballing authorities, the FCF, also added: "The Colombian Football Federation rejects the security situation that the parents of our player Luis Diaz are going through.
"From the FCF, we express our solidarity with him and his entire family, and we call for the relevant authorities to act as quickly as possible to resolve the situation."
This article was originally published on 90min as Luis Diaz's parents kidnapped in Colombia.
