Gang leader sentenced to more than 18 years for kidnap of a Cádiz businessman

The man who thought up and led a plan to kidnap a Cádiz businessman from Sanlúcar de Barrameda in 2008 is to spend more than 18 years in prison in a sentence from the Cádiz provincial court which was made public on Thursday.

Luis Miguel Rodríguez Puego admitted his guilt during the trial and asked for forgiveness from the victim and his family. Rafael Ávila was kidnapped from Sanlúcar on June 2 2008, spending 16 days in captivity before he was rescued by police. His rescue came on the day of the kidnappers’ deadline for the 2 million € ransom they had demanded from his family.

Another four people were also found guilty by the court and each sentenced to more than 10 years in prison. One of them is Raúl Brey, the owner of the property in Almonte, Huelva province, where Rafael Ávila was held captive. He is a cousin of Mariano Rajoy Brey, President of the Partido Popular, and will spend 15 and a half years behind bars.

Another of those sentenced is a son of the main accused, while a second son was acquitted of charges and ordered to be immediately released from remand. Two other suspects were also found not guilty.