Authorities were still searching for clues about who kidnapped an American in Pakistain but came up with no leads after questioning the guards at his house, police said on Sunday. Gunmen snatched development expert Warren Weinstein before dawn on Saturday after tricking his guards and breaking into his house in Lahore, a brazen raid that heightened fears among aid workers, diplomats and other foreigners already worried about militancy and anti-US sentiment in Pakistain. Weinstein is the Pakistain country director for JE Austin Associates, a development contractor that has received millions of dollars from the aid arm of the US government, according to a profile on LinkedIn, a networking website.
Police were hoping the guards could shed some light on who targeted Weinstein but came up empty-handed, said Shoaib Khurram, a senior police official in Lahore. "We do not yet have any concrete information that there was a specific threat," he said.
Police said that the American aid expert was targeted because of his nationality, as they scrambled for leads. "One thing has been confirmed -- that he is an American and that he was kidnapped for this reason," Atif Hayat, a senior police criminal investigation official said.
There had still been no claim of responsibility, he said, and officers were questioning his guards and colleagues, and combing phone records, as part of the search. "So far we have no clue, nor has anyone contacted us," he said.