Journalist Mario Esteban López managed to escape with his life after the matches were too wet for his kidnappers to light the more than two gallons of gasoline they poured on him, EFE reports.

López, the director of Canal 22 TV in Ipiales, Nariño, believes the attack was ordered by drug traffickers in the city and also accused the mayor of having threatened him, ABC explains.

The journalist escaped after being beaten for several hours when a police patrol came through the area. However, the journalist told EFE that upon reporting the attack, “the police only gave me a self-protection manual.”

Journalism groups like the Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP) and the Colombian Federation of Journalists (Fecolper) repudiated the attack, RCN Radio adds.