French businessman Pierre Tortel, who was allegedly kidnapped, escaped in western Turkey, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported on Friday.

Turkish security forces earlier launched a full-scale operation to find Tortel after he secretly called his wife in France, saying he was kidnapped, said the report.

Later, Tortel was found by Turkish security forces in the Dinar town near the western Turkish city of Afyonkarahisar.

Tortel said he was kidnapped by two bearded men in a shopping mall in Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey.

"I was brought to Denizli by train and they took me to Izmir and then to Isparta. While I was in Denizli, I secretly called my wife by my mobile phone and told her that I was kidnapped. They left me in a house in Isparta after tying my hands and feet. I managed to untie myself and escaped. Then I came to Dinar by train," he said.

Investigation into the incident was underway, according to the report.

Source: Xinhua