A millionaire British businessman kidnapped in Ecuador has been freed by police.
Colin Armstrong, 78, was dragged from his home in Los Rios province on Saturday morning and taken captive.
The entrepreneur, who was previously the honorary British consul in the city of Guayaquil, was taken from his home in the town of Baba along with Katherine Paola Santos, his girlfriend.
She was later released and was questioned by police over the kidnapping, reported Ecuadorean media.
The official X account of Ecuador's national police on Wednesday morning retweeted a picture appearing to show Mr Armstrong with two officers, with the message: "#SinTreguaAlDelito" (#NoTruceToCrime).
#SinTreguaAlDelito https://t.co/PxuZlZBrLL
— Policía Ecuador (@PoliciaEcuador) December 20, 2023
Officers said nine people had been arrested.
The well-known businessman is the founder and owner of an agricultural company, Agripac, which operates in Ecuador, and owner of the Tupgill Park Estate in North Yorkshire.
Local media reported Mr Armstrong was kidnapped at dawn on Saturday at a farm he owned in Baba in Los Rios province.
As many as 15 men entered the property dressed as police officers and took him away, according to one local report.
Mr Armstrong was awarded the OBE and Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George for services to the British Monarchy in 2011.
British ambassador to Ecuador Chris Campbell said on social media: "We are delighted that Colin Armstrong OBE, our former honorary consul in Guayaquil, has been safely released.
"Our thanks to the National Police for all their efforts to achieve Colin's release. Thank you."
Colin's daughter Diana Armstrong-Bruns, an estate agent based in California, previously told Mail Online: "This is a critical time, we've been told not to say anything to anyone. We just want my father back."
Kidnappings for ransom and robberies have become more common in parts of Ecuador.
Most of the violence is attributed to the increasing involvement of local gangs with rival Mexican drug cartels.
