An American tourist and a tour guide, who was abducted by four unidentified gunmen within Uganda’s famous Queen Elizabeth National park on Tuesday (2nd April 2019), have finally been freed after a ransom was paid.
Kimberly Sue Endecott, 35 and her tour guide-Jean Paul Mirenge (working with Wild Frontiers Uganda Safaris) were abducted by four unidentified men at gunpoint while on an evening game drive along the Edward track between the Park’s Katoke gate and Wilderness Camp (also owned by Wild Frontiers). The safari vehicle of registration number UAE 777E which they were using was also occupied by two other people, described as an elderly couple who were abandoned in the vehicle without keys.
Deputy Police Spokeswoman, ACP Polly Namaye said then that the kidnappers grabbed the female tourist and her driver leaving other two occupants of the vehicle between 6 pm and 7 pm, and used Kimberly’s phone to demand a ransom of $500,000 (approximately 1.8 billion) for their release. A joint security team was dispatched to search for the missing persons and by 7th April, Authorities confirmed that the duo is in good health and safe hands of the joint Security Team.
However, authorities did not confirm the ransom payment and the safe recovery of the abductees has been credited to the joint efforts of the search team from Uganda Wildlife Authority, Military and Police as well as US Military. Government Spokesperson, Ofwono Opondo tweeted that both were rescued from the Democratic Republic of Congo and are now safely back at the Lodge in Kanungu District. He further said the kidnappers escaped the rescue scene when Law Enforcement Officers and soldiers arrived. Much as the US Government disclosed last week that it doesn’t pay ransoms for abducted citizens because it encourages more abductions, anonymous sources disclosed that Wild Frontiers paid an unspecified amount of money to the kidnappers for the safe return of abducted tourist and driver.
American President Donald Trump also tweeted on Sunday 7th April that he was “Pleased to report that the American tourist and tour guide that was abducted in Uganda have been released. God bless them and their families.
The success in the search and rescue of the tourist and driver is a sigh of relief to the country’s tourism sector that has in the years recorded a tremendous growth of tourist numbers and revenue. Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of Uganda’s most outstanding destinations, sprawled along the border with the conflict-inflicted Virunga National Park of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It boasts of over 95 species of mammals including more than 2500 elephants, buffaloes, lions, and leopards as well as over 600 bird species.
Conclusively, even with the recent case of kidnap involving an American tourist and her driver/guide and eventual rescue, Uganda is still one of the safest and secure African destinations for safaris.
