Mexican footballer Omar Ortiz arrested in kidnap-ring scandal.

Omar "El Gato" Ortiz, the former Mexican international footballer (soccer) has been arrested for allegedly taking part in a kidnapping ring.

The BBC have reported that the former footballer Omar "El Gato" Ortiz has been arrested by police in Mexico following accusations that he was been part of a kidnapping ring. This came after police searched the footballer's home in San Nicolas de los Garza . Ortiz has been charged with being a member a gang responsible for at least 20 kidnappings, as well as being involved in drugs trafficking. The gang, rumoured to be part of Mexico's infamous Gulf Cartel, have been operating within the Nuevo Leon state.

Ortiz's role, according to security services, has to help the gang select wealthy victims for abduction. NBC Sports speculates that Oritz used his social contacts to help select people who were wealthy enough to be able to pay a ransom. The Huffington Post reports that one of the victims of the gang was Armando Gomez, the husband of Mexican pop star Gloria Trevi. CNN reports that the gang were active around the south of the industrial city of Monterrey. The gang focused on kidnapping merchants and charging ransoms of around 1 million pesos ($72,600).

Oritz, nicknamed "El Gato" (Mexican for "the Cat"), played for major league Mexcian soccer teams including Monterrey , Club Celaya and Chiapas. He was select three times for the national team, although he only played on one occasion in 2002. It is possible that, following his suspension and due to the possible end to his soccer career, that Oritz was tempted into crime in order to fun his lifestyle.