Police raided an apartment in a poor district of Sao Paulo and freed the kidnapped sister of AC Milan striker Ricardo Oliveira.
Maria de Lourdes Silva de Oliveira was found alone on Monday and appeared to be unharmed five months after she was abducted on Oct. 4 last year by two hooded gunmen who broke into her home in Sao Paulo, South America's biggest city, police said on Tuesday.
The abductors had overpowered her husband and children before taking her.
PHOTO: AP
"She was in a state of shock," police spokeswoman Luciana Araripe said. "She was taken to the Sao Mateus Hospital for treatment."
Police received an anonymous tip by Internet and sent six officers to the Rodolfo Pirani district on Sao Paulo's east side, Araripe said.
"They heard a woman shouting, and kicked down the door," she said. Inside, they found the 36-year-old Oliveira.
No suspects were located, but police found documents that could lead them to the possible kidnappers, Araripe said.
In Milan, an elated Ricardo Oliveira called club vice president Adriano Galliani and told him that his sister had been freed, the Italian club said on its Web site.
"I'm also very happy," Galliani said. "Just like Ricardo Oliveira was at the moment when he told me his sister was well."
Oliveira said he didn't know if his sister was alive or dead during the months she was kidnapped and thanked AC Milan's fans, his teammates and the club president for their support
"Finally, this good news from Brazil. It is great that she is doing well," he said in a statement on the club's Web site. "Now, I can focus on playing football for this side. I want to do everything that I can to repay everything this club has done for me."
Oliveira said he was still in shock and didn't want to talk at length about the kidnapping.
"This is a joyous moment for everyone, not just me. At the same time, you can't really understand how horrible it is to go through something like this unless you have experienced it first hand," he said on the Web site.
The kidnapping of family members of soccer stars was taboo for many years in this country, where the sport is a national passion. But abductions have increased dramatically in recent years.
Real Madrid midfielder Robinho, whose has been compared to Pele and who led Santos to the national title in 2002 and 2004, transferred to the giant Spanish club two years ago in a move he said could help him protect his family.
His mother was kidnapped for 40 days at the end of 2004.
Robinho reportedly paid a ransom of about US$80,000 for her release.
Last year, the mother of Santos defender Kleber was rescued unharmed nearly two hours after being kidnapped in Sao Paulo, according to the Sao Paulo State Public Safety Department. She was the sixth mother of a soccer player to be kidnapped since November 2004.
Sevilla striker Luis Fabiano, former Sporting Lisbon defender Rogerio, Le Mans striker Grafite and Corinthians defender Marinho also had their mothers kidnapped and released, often after ransom was paid.
When Paddy Dwyer arrived in China in 1976, crowds jostled to catch a glimpse of him and his companions — the first Western soccer team to play in the country. China was emerging from the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, and on the brink of market reforms that would take the country from economic stagnation to explosive growth. “All we could see was lines of people running beside our bus, trying to look in the windows, to see their first visual of a white person,” he said. “It was all bicycles,” he said. “There were very few cars to be seen.” Dwyer,
Jannik Sinner continued his quest to become the first man in history to win five Masters 1000 tournaments in a row with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Danish qualifier Elmer Moller at the Madrid Open on Sunday. The world leader extended his winning streak to 19 matches, a run that began early March in Indian Wells, and he has captured 24 consecutive victories at the Masters 1000 level, dating back to the Paris Masters last October. Searching for a maiden title at this level on clay, Sinner advanced to the round of 16 at the Caja Magica with a 77-minute performance against
Tennis players are facing an unexpected opponent at the Madrid Open. A stomach virus or food poisoning has affected Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Marin Cilic and others, raising concerns. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoided an upset by Naomi Osaka on the court on Monday and said she is trying to avoid illness by sticking to a diet of chicken breasts, rice and salad. The rumor among the players was bad shrimp tacos were to blame. Sabalenka knocked on wood for luck and said, “So far, so good. I heard that I have to avoid those tacos,” she laughed, adding “I stick to the
Some of Clearlake Capital Group’s largest investors are growing increasingly concerned about how much time the company’s co-founders are spending on sports investments as they have struggled to complete the fundraising for the private equity firm’s latest flagship fund. One of Clearlake’s co-founders, Behdad Eghbali, has been spending what some investors described as a disproportionate amount of time on the firm’s investment in Chelsea Football Club in recent months. Now, co-founder Jose E. Feliciano and his wife, Kwanza Jones, are nearing a record US$3.9 billion deal to acquire the San Diego Padres. That personal investment by Feliciano has set off the latest
RSS