Relations between Venezuela and Mexico became much more complicated when a Mexican ambassador and his wife were kidnapped and released in the same day. Ambassador to Caracas, Carlos Pujalte and his wife were grabbed in the early morning hours and released that evening in a slum. Venezuela is known for its high profile kidnappings, this is just another one in a series lately.

Preliminary police reports are saying that the couple was grabbed by four gunmen from their car after a reception in the upscale Country Club zone of Caracas. The media and the Mexican embassy has reported that the Ambassador and his wife are unhurt but they are obviously shook up by the experience. Police are still investigating the incident and not may details have been released yet about who may be behind the incident and what their goal was in abducting them.

Kidnapping high-profile people is becoming a trend. Last year Major League Baseball player Wilson Ramos, a catcher for the Washington Nationals, was abducted and held for two days before being rescued by a raid of security forces on a mountain hideout. According to Al-jazeera who cites diplomatic sources, senior diplomats from Chile and Belarus were also grabbed in similar incidents. A Chilean consul, Juan Carlos Fernandez was shot and beaten back in November when he was kidnapped.

Kidnappings and violent crime are a major issue in Venezuela and ranked very high among voter concerns.

Source:
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2012/01/201213019186248373.html