BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) --A Japanese man kidnapped for the second time in three
years in August has been freed by leftist guerrillas, authorities said.

Shoro Shimura, 72, was released Thursday near the vacation town of Melgar, some
60 miles (100 kilometers) from the capital. There was no immediate word on his
condition.

Army anti-kidnapping chief Col. Carlos Arevalo said Shimura was apparently freed
on condition he return with "more money" for the kidnappers, believed to be from
the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.

Arevalo did not specify whether a partial ransom had already been paid. The FARC
has not publicly claimed responsibility for the abduction.

According to authorities, FARC rebels grabbed Shimura on August 31 near his estate
in the countryside outside Bogota. Shimura was reportedly visiting Colombia to sell
properties so he could pay back debts incurred from a ransom paid for his earlier
kidnapping.

He was abducted here in September 1998 kidnapping by the same rebel group and
held for a year.

The FARC is believed to be holding another Japanese citizen, Chikao Muramatsu,
since February.

At least 3,700 people were kidnapped last year in Colombia, the country with the
world's highest kidnapping rate. Foreigners are prime targets for guerrillas and
common criminals because they often fetch large ransoms.

Abductions have increased as the armed factions try to finance a widening,
decades-old war against the state.

Copyright 2001 The Associated Press.