Former Perth veterinarian and Murdoch University staffer Jerome Hugonot released by kidnappers in Chad

A former Perth veterinarian kidnapped in the troubled African nation of Chad has been released after three days in captivity.

Jerome Hugonot, a French-Australian wildlife conservationist who used to work at Murdoch University, was working for the Sahara Conservation Fund in Wadi Fara province bordering Sudan when he was abducted on Friday.

The Chadian president Lt Gen Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno announced a rescue mission had succeeded in securing his release early Monday morning: “I am delighted with this happy ending and congratulate the efforts made within the framework of this release.”

Mr Hugonot was managing a conservation park in Chad’s northeast where the NGO is working to reintroduce the scimitar horned oryx, a species of desert antelope, when he was abducted by armed men.

In Australia, Mr Hugonot worked at Larkhill Vets in Baldivis and Murray Veterinary Services, an equine hospital in the small Peel town of Coolup, which says on a Facebook post that Mr Hugonot is married, has a daughter, and migrated from France to Australia in 2002.

On Sunday, a Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said they were aware of the kidnapping reports, and confirmed the Australian Government was in contact with Chad and French authorities, but could not provide further details due to privacy obligations.

“We are aware of the kidnapping of one of our compatriots in Chad and are in touch with his family, as well as with Chadian authorities, in order to obtain his release quickly,” Associated Press reported the French foreign ministry as having said in a statement.

Before Mr Hugonot’s release, Kris Warren, professor of wildlife, zoological and conservation medicine at Murdoch University — where Mr Hugonnot graduated from in 2010 and worked as a resident veterinarian in 2012 — told The West Australian she was deeply concerned to hear of the kidnapping.

“I hope that the Australian and French governments are advocating at the highest possible international levels to ensure his safety,” she said in an emailed statement.

“We know that the majority of global biodiversity hotspots are located in developing countries, and in these countries there are many complex factors including socioeconomic and political instability that can pose challenges in undertaking in situ conservation projects.”

Chad is a landlocked, semidesert state in central western Africa which has been run by a military junta since its former president Idriss Deby died in April last year after ruling for three decades.

The Wadi Fara province has experienced organised crime and deadly violence on both sides of the border.

At least 50 people were killed and nearly 300 injured in protests in Chad last week as hundreds of people protested in the streets to call for a quicker transition to a democracy.

Security forces fired on protesters in several cities, including the capital N’Djamena, on October 20, Human Rights Watch said.

— with AP