US businessman kidnapped in Tucson was taken to Mexico

MEXICO CITY – Prosecutors in the northern Mexico state of Sonora say a New York-based businessman has been freed after being kidnapped near Tucson, Arizona, a week ago and held for ransom across the border.

Prosecutors say that in a rare cross-border kidnapping, the kidnappers transported the victims across the border at Nogales in the trunk of a car.

Prosecutors haven’t identified the victim by name, but say he is a Dominican-born businessman. They say kidnappers contacted the victim’s brother in Orlando, Florida, and demanded a $500,000 ransom for his release.

The Sonora state government said Sunday that the FBI aided in the investigation. The victim was found Sunday in the Sonora state capital, Hermosillo. He was apparently guarded by a suspected kidnapper from Chihuahua state who had a .45 calibre pistol.