Spanish group were contacted by alleged members of the Zetas gang via mobile and told they could be shot at any time
Members of the chillwave band Delorean were reportedly "virtually kidnapped" as their tour passed through Mexico City this weekend. While the Basque indie group are all now safely en route to a tour date in the US, thugs allegedly demanded 20m pesos (£940,000) in ransom money during the ordeal, which ended on Monday.
According to El País, Delorean had arrived in Mexico City to perform at last week's Mutek festival. They were contacted by alleged members of the Zetas gang, who threatened to kill the musicians if they did not obey very particular orders. Delorean agreed to change hotels, give up their mobile phones and buy new ones as per the gangsters' instructions.
The "kidnappers" did not use guns or physical violence during the affair. They communicated with the band by phone, warning them that they were being watched and could be shot at any time. Meanwhile, they ordered the band members to make phonecalls to relatives, telling their families that they had been kidnapped and demanding a ransom of 5m pesos per person.
After hearing from family members, Spanish federal police travelled from Madrid to Oiartzun to coordinate a response, El Pais reported, and working with Mexican authorities, eventually located the band. "Initially we feared that the kidnapping was much more complicated and difficult," a spokesman told the newspaper. Luckily, it appears that Delorean were not actually being held by a group of gunmen – they just believed they were.
While Delorean cancelled a 7 October gig in San Francisco, they will reportedly resume their tour tonight in Seattle. Two other Spanish acts, John Talabot and Pional, have since announced they are calling off a Mexican tour. "We are happy that our friends Delorean are OK," Talabot wrote (via Consequence of Sound), "[but] we are cancelling our tour in Mexico for security reasons."
Founded in 2000, Delorean recently released their fourth album, Apar.
by Sean Michaels via Music: Electronic music | theguardian.com
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