DAILY TIMES OF NIGERIA, AP (Nigeria), CORRIERE DEL MEZZOGIORNO (Italy)
Police rescued midfielder Christian Obodo, a player in Italy's top soccer division, a day after he was abducted in his native Nigeria.
Obodo’s abductors had contacted his family in the delta city of Warri to demand a ransom of 150,000 euros, the Daily Times of Nigeria reports.
Police and security agencies in Nigeria traced Obodo's suspected kidnappers using their mobile phone transmissions, and were able to free the soccer player without needing to pay any ransom, the Associated Press reported.
The Nigeria international, who has played for Udinese and Lecce in Italy's Serie A league, said after his release: "I thank God that I am free," his brother Kenneth --who plays for Italy's Pisa soccer club-- told the Italian newspaper Corriere del Mezzogiorno.
