Police have released an image of a man they are looking to trace after a man was
kidnapped and murdered.Tomasz Samel, 45, suffered 75 per cent burns after the horrific kidnapping on March 27 last year.
He was ambushed by two men posing as Interpol officers in hi-vis vests and bundled into a white van outside his home in Handsworth, Birmingham at 8.45am.
At 10.45pm that day, he banged on the door of a property in Bickerstaffe, Lancashire, suffering from serious burns after being dumped 100 miles from his home.
Mr Samel was rushed to hospital and treated in the specialist burns unit at Whiston but died three months later on June 21.
On Wednesday, (March 11), West Midlands Police released an image of Kevin Wooden, who is wanted in connection with the murder, in the run up to the anniversary of the kidnap.
The force believe Wooden is out of the country and have appealed for anyone with information on his whereabouts to come forward.
Two men, aged 29 and 28, were arrested last year on suspicion of murder and conspiracy to kidnap.
A 31-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. All three have been released while enquiries continue.
Det Chief Insp Scott Griffiths said, “This was a horrific attack, and although these arrests were a significant development in our investigation, a year on we are still working tirelessly to understand exactly what happened on that day and why.
“As we approach the anniversary of Mr Samel’s kidnap, we have released an image of Kevin Wooden who we urgently want to speak to.
“We have reason to believe Wooden is currently out of the country and we are urgently appealing for anyone who has any information to contact us.
“We’d also appeal to members of the Polish community in the UK to come forward and help us with any information they may have.
“It may be that people are reluctant to give information, but they can give us information in complete confidence."
Police previously revealed Mr Samel was able to speak to them following his ordeal but they would not reveal exactly what he said to them before his death.
Det Chief Insp Anastasia Miller said at the time: "This was a shocking attack and certainly one of the most horrific in my professional experience.
"We had spoken to Tomasz while he was in hospital but he was very unwell. We can't disclose what was said before he died."
Anyone with information is asked to contact police via Live Chat at west-midlands.police.uk between 8am and midnight, call 101, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
