An American citizen and her local guide have been abducted during a game ride in a prominent tourist park in Uganda, a U.S federal official confirmed to Fox News on Wednesday.
The incident is believed to have happened between 6 and 7 pm Tuesday near a wilderness camp in Queen Elizabeth National Park, where two armed men held four tourists at gunpoint. Two were rescued and alerted authorities.
However, the mobile phone of the American woman, who has been identified as Kimberley Sue Endecott, 35, was used to make a ransom demand of $500,000, according to Ugandan police. It is unclear where she is being held.
“The police dispatched an elite squad from the Tourism Police to reinforce security teams and actively pursue a group of 4 unknown gunmen,” the Deputy Police Spokesperson Polly Namaye said in a statement, noting that they believe the victims are likely still in the area. “We want to further reassure the public that this is the first incident of this kind registered in such a very peaceful setting.”
The U.S. official confirmed to Fox News that they are currently in the process of trying to gather all the details of the alleged ransom demand.
The exit between the park and the Democratic Republic of Congo has since been closed. It is not yet known which group or individuals are behind the kidnapping.
KAMPALA, April 3 (Reuters) - An American woman and her Ugandan driver have been kidnapped from Queen Elizabeth National Park in southwest Uganda by gunmen demanding a ransom of $500,000, police said on Wednesday.
Kimberley Sue Endecott, 35, and Ugandan driver Jean Paul were on a game drive when their vehicle was ambushed by four gunmen on Tuesday evening, a police statement said.
An elderly couple who were also at the scene were not taken, and they raised the alarm, the police said.
RELATED: High-profile kidnapping cases
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High-profile kidnapping cases through the years
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Elizabeth Smart
Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped from her bedroom in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2002 when she was 14. She was found nine months later after she was recognized while out in public with her captors. Brian David Mitchell was convicted of kidnapping and raping Smart and was sentenced to life in prison in 2011. Mitchell's estranged wife, Wanda Barzee, admitted to her role in the kidnapping and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
(Photo by Douglas C. Pizac-Pool/Getty Images) (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Jaycee Lee Dugard
Phillip and Nancy Garrido abducted Jaycee Lee Dugard in 1991 near Lake Tahoe when she was 11 and held her captive for 18 years. Dugard was forced to live in tents and sheds behind Garrido's home in California. She was found in 2009 after Garrido brought her to his parole meeting and investigators became suspicious. Phillip Garrido reportedly raped her for years and fathered two children with her. Phillip was sentenced to 431 years to life in prison and his wife was sentenced to 36 years to life.
Nancy Garrido (Photo by El Dorado County Sheriff via Getty Images) Jaycee Lee Dugard (Photo by Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Phillip Garrido (Photo by El Dorado County Sheriff via Getty Images)
Charles Lindbergh, Jr.
Charles Lindbergh Jr., the son of the American aviator, was kidnapped from his home in March 1932. A ladder was used to climb up to the baby's bedroom and a ransom note was left behind. The infant's body was later discovered near the Lindbergh's mansion in New Jersey. Bruno Richard Hauptmann was convicted of murder and was later executed by electric chair.
Charles Lindbergh Jr. (Photo by BIPS/Getty Images)
Bruno Richard Hauptmann (Bettmann via Getty Images)
Caylee Anthony
3-year-old Caylee Anthony was last seen alive on June 16, 2008. She wasn't reported missing until a month later when her mother, Casey Anthony, told investigators that a babysitter kidnapped her. The young girl's remains were found in a wooded-area in December 2008. Casey Anthony stood trial for her daughter's murder but was acquitted.
Caylee Anthony (Photo by Orlando Sentinel/Orlando Sentinel/MCT via Getty Images)
Casey Anthony (Photo by Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel/MCT via Getty Images)
Natascha Kampusch
Natascha Kampusch vanished when she was 10-years-old in 1998 while walking to school. The woman broke free on August 23, 2006, after living for eight years in a small basement area under a garage next to the suspected kidnappers house in Strasshof, 15 miles outside of the capital Vienna. The suspect, Wolfgang Priklopil committed suicide after Kampusch managed to escape.
(REUTERS/HO/Police)
Carlina White
Carlina White, seen here as a baby and adult, was kidnapped from Harlem Hospital in 1987. As she grew up she began to question if the woman who was raising her was actually her mother. After doing some research she discovered a picture of herself when she was an infant on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children website and was eventually reunited with her family 23 years later. The woman who abducted her, Ann Pettway, was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
(Photo by NY Daily News via Getty Images)
Relisha Rudd
8-year-old Relisha Rudd disappeared on March 1, 2014. She was last seen spending time with the janitor of the homeless shelter where she stayed with her mother. That man, Kahlil Tatum later killed himself but Relisha has never been found.
(Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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The identity of the kidnappers was unclear. The Somali Islamist militant group al Shabaab has carried out attacks in Uganda in the past, but has never kidnapped anyone for ransom there.
The park, Uganda's most visited, is located about 400 km (250 miles) southwest of the capital Kampala, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), home to many fragmented rebel groups.
Police said initial indications were that the kidnapping was financially motivated, since the group had quickly made a demand using Endecott's cellphone.
"We strongly believe this ransom is the reason behind this kidnap," they said. "The Joint Security teams have cut off all exit areas on the border between Uganda and the DRC in search of the victims."
The police believe the group may still be in the park, their statement said.
The U.S. embassy in Kampala said it would be issuing a statement later.
In 1999, an American couple, four Britons and two New Zealanders were killed along with four Ugandan guides when their group was ambushed by gunmen in Uganda's Bwidi Impenetrable Forest. Survivors said the killers appeared to be Hutu rebels based in Congo.
Bwidi Forest begins about 20 km (12 miles) south of Queen Elizabeth National Park. (Writing by Katharine Houreld; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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By Alexander Smith, Vivi Vitalone and Alanna Satur
An American tourist and her local driver have been kidnapped by gunmen in Uganda, local officials said Wednesday.
An elite police unit was deployed to hunt for the pair after they were ambushed while on safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park on Tuesday night, according to the Ugandan government and police.
Local police and the national tourist board identified the American woman as Kimberly Sue, 35. Investigators said the driver's name was Jean Paul.
The assailants used one of the victims' cellphones to call authorities and demand $500,000 for their release, police said, adding that they "strongly believe this ransom is the reason behind the kidnap."
At least two other people, named by police as Martin and Barbel Julius, were traveling with the group near the border with Democratic Republic of Congo.
The four kidnappers abducted the American and the driver, taking their keys but leaving the vehicle behind, according to police. The others in the vehicle escaped unharmed and later contacted authorities. The government earlier said that four people had escaped the incident.
Police said they have blocked the nearby border in an attempt to corner the kidnappers.
"We strongly believe the perpetrators and victims could still be trapped within our search area," police said. "We are hopeful that our efforts will lead to their successful recovery."
NBC News has reached out to the State Department for comment.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda's most popular tourist destination. It is home to elephants, hippos, lions and chimps.
Alexander Smith
Alexander Smith is a London-based senior reporter for NBC News Digital.
Vivi Vitalone
Vivi Vitalone is a London-based desk editor for NBC News.
Alanna Satur
Alanna Satur is a senior desk editor based in NBC News' London bureau.
Pilots of the 737 Max jet that crashed in Ethiopia in March initially followed Boeing's standard emergency procedures to try to get control of the plane, but ultimately failed, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
Crew members turned off the flight-control system that automatically pushed down the plane's nose after take off, but could not get the plane to climb, the Journal reported, citing people briefed on the investigation's preliminary findings. They ended up turning the control system back on before the plane crashed, killing all 157 people on board.
It's the latest report in the midst of mounting pressure on Boeing and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration over their assertions that had pilots simply followed established safety procedures, the crash may have been avoided. The new details of the crash are based on data from the aircraft's black-box recorders.
The pilots turned the electrical power back on, which re-engaged the stall-prevention feature, known as MCAS, and then used electrical switches to try to raise the nose, the people told the Journal.
It's not clear why Ethiopian Flight 302 pilots turned the automated system back on rather than continuing to follow Boeing's standard emergency steps. Government officials and investigators said it's likely that manual controls to raise the nose of the plane didn't work, and pilots tried to re-engage the system to combat the nose-down angle of the jet and failed, the Journal reported.
The same control system was also used in the 737 Max crash in Indonesia in October that resulted in deaths of all 189 people on board.
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation launched an investigation yesterday into whistleblower complaints accusing the FAA of improperly training its safety inspectors to review the Boeing jets. The FAA may have been notified about these deficiencies as early as August 2018, the panel said. The Justice Department has also launched a criminal probe.
Ethiopian investigators are expected to release a preliminary report about the crash in the upcoming days. Investigators looking to the Lion Air Flight 610 crash think that similar system malfunctions were involved, including erroneous data from a single sensor that caused the MCAS system to misfire.
Boeing is still preparing software updates for the 737 Max plane's flight-control system. The plane maker initially planned to submit the fixes to the FAA last week, but said it needs more time. The revised software will have two sensors, rather than one, and will give pilots more control over the system, according to Boeing.
The United Kingdom's defence ministry has launched an investigation into a social media video apparently showing British soldiers using a picture of Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn for target practice.
The ministry said the incident, allegedly filmed at a shooting range in the Afghan capital, Kabul, was "totally unacceptable", according to a report by Sky News.
"We are aware of a video circulating on social media, this behaviour is totally unacceptable and falls well below the high standards the Army expects," an army spokesperson said.
"A full investigation has been launched," he added.
Al Jazeera was not able to verify the authenticity of the footage.
The video has prompted outrage, and many social media users criticised the footage, coming in the wake of the 2016 murder of Labour MP Jo Cox by far-right killer Thomas Mair and a foiled 2017 plot to murder Rosie Cooper, another Labour MP.
Video has emerged of soldiers on a shooting range in Kabul firing at a target of Jeremy Corbyn. MOD confirms it as legit: pic.twitter.com/qOr84Aiivj
Corbyn has not been a popular figure for some army circles due to his views on the UK's involvement in the war in Iraq and army practices in Northern Ireland during the Troubles - a violent period when more than 3,500 people were killed in sectarian violence.
Theresa May has finally made a decision. And it's not one her hard-Brexit allies will like.
The Prime Minister has recognized what many have been saying for weeks -- that there's no majority for her deal in Parliament.
In offering talks with the opposition Labour Party -- and, crucially, offering to accept the result of any vote in Parliament for an alternative Brexit plan -- May has also recognized that she will never be able to persuade her supposed allies in the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, nor a hard core of Brexiteers in her own Conservative Party.
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May giving a statement inside 10 Downing Street in London.
May has picked a side, and in agreeing to a cross-party approach, it's the side of a "soft" Brexit -- one that envisages a closer relationship with the EU than she previously could countenance.
"This is a difficult time for everyone. Passions are running high on all sides of the argument. But we can and must find the compromises that will deliver what the British people voted for," May said.
That's a sign that she's about to rub out at least some of her infamous "red lines" which shaped the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU -- out of the Customs Union, which stops the UK signing independent trade deals, and out of the Single Market, which requires the UK to accept unlimited immigration from the EU.
Theresa May has finally made a decision. And it's not one her hard-Brexit allies will like.
The Prime Minister has recognized what many have been saying for weeks -- that there's no majority for her deal in Parliament.
In offering talks with the opposition Labour Party -- and, crucially, offering to accept the result of any vote in Parliament for an alternative Brexit plan -- May has also recognized that she will never be able to persuade her supposed allies in the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, nor a hard core of Brexiteers in her own Conservative Party.
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May giving a statement inside 10 Downing Street in London.
May has picked a side, and in agreeing to a cross-party approach, it's the side of a "soft" Brexit -- one that envisages a closer relationship with the EU than she previously could countenance.
"This is a difficult time for everyone. Passions are running high on all sides of the argument. But we can and must find the compromises that will deliver what the British people voted for," May said.
That's a sign that she's about to rub out at least some of her infamous "red lines" which shaped the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU -- out of the Customs Union, which stops the UK signing independent trade deals, and out of the Single Market, which requires the UK to accept unlimited immigration from the EU.
