Ukrainian police have released 15 Afghans, including six children, who have been taken hostage in the Black Sea city of Odessa, the police press service said on Wednesday.
The hostages, including six men, three women and children, were kidnapped from the Odessa bus station by members of a criminal gang, the report said, without specifying on the date of the abduction.
Odessa police learned about the kidnapping from another Afghan national who said his 15 acquaintances had disappeared while travelling to the capital, Kiev.
Four gang members were arrested in an ensuing police raid, the report said. They demanded $10,000 from relatives of the kidnapped Afghans in exchange for their release.
Two of the detainees had previous convictions for banditry, drug possession and rape, the report said. The four face up to 15 years in jail if found guilty of hostage taking.
