Engineer kidnapped in Nigeria a 55-year-old man from Sicily
(ANSA) Rome, December 6 – An Italian engineer kidnapped in Nigeria was identified Friday as Marcello Rizzo, 55, from Sicily.
Rizzo is an employee of Gitto Construction which has more than 50 years experience in the construction sector in Italy and abroad, and has an office in Nigeria.
Earlier in the day, foreign ministry officials said they had opened all possible channels in the case and were acting with “maximum restraint”. Officials said they had also been in contact with the family of the engineer, who had been working on a bridge construction project.
Foreign workers have frequently been targeted for kidnapping in Nigeria by various armed groups there amid ethnic and political unrest.
In February, the fundamentalist Islamist group Ansaru claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of seven foreign workers, including Italian engineer Silvano Trevisan.
Ansaru is linked to Al Qaeda.