U.S. consulate reports kidnapping in Nigeria's Lagos State

LAGOS, March 25 (Xinhua) -- An unidentified foreigner was kidnapped late Sunday in Nigeria's southwest, according to the U.S. consulate here.

The incident occurred at 11 p.m. local time (2200 GMT) on Victoria Island in Lagos State, known as Nigeria's commercial nerve center, the consulate said in a statement.

The U.S. consulate said it broke the news to alert its citizens in the city, adding local Nigerian law enforcement agents have confirmed this incident.

Police in Lagos State, home to some 18 million people, were yet to issue any official statement on this although a security source said they had launched investigation.

Kidnapping of expatriates is rare in Lagos, regarded as Nigeria's economic capital. But high-profile kidnappings and abduction of foreigners for ransom are rampant in the southern oil-rich states and most victims were released unharmed after payment of ransoms.

The Nigerian Islamist extremist group Boko Haram and another Islamist Ansaru sect have recently claimed responsibility for the abduction of some foreigners.

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