According to Arnold Sinisalu, head of the Security Police, the abducted officer was a man and a long-time official.

Mr Sinisalu said that preliminary information does not suggest that there was “political motivation” behind the abduction.

Although the abducted officer was threatened with a gun, there are no signs of actual use of firearms at the site of the crime.

The chief of the Security Police revealed that the officer was at the time of the incident preventing a cross-border crime. Mr Sinisalu explained that the abducted official was gathering information on a possible corruption case involving the border and customs service.

He added that at around 1 PM local time Estonian Border Guard officers had met their Russian counterparts to discuss the case. Apparently Russian border guards had denied any knowledge of the abduction.

The Estonian Security Police officer was abducted at today around at 9 AM local time.

According to the earlier statement unidentified persons coming from Russia took the freedom of an Estonian Security Police officer on the territory of Estonia, near Luhamaa border crossing station. The officer was taken to Russia using physical force and at gunpoint.

The officer was fulfilling his duties in connection to preventing a cross-border crime in taking place. Use of smoke grenades and intense interference with operative radio connections preceded the incident.