Loved ones fear Bay Area man abducted in Afghanistan after trying to rescue wife

UNION CITY, Calif. - A U.S. citizen is missing in Afghanistan and loved ones fear that he's been abducted.

Sean Khalji, who lives in the Bay Area, went to Kabul three weeks ago to rescue his wife. Now his bosses believe he too needs rescuing.

One of his bosses recorded a phone call with him on Tuesday as armed men scaled the wall of his family home to take him. That was the last time anyone heard from him.

"Everything just unraveled right then and there on the telephone," said Victoria Battison-Makinster, who with her husband Dan Makinster, runs Agile Communication Systems.

The couple recorded Tuesday's phone call with Khalji.

"I don't know what's going on. But they've surrounded the house now. They're going to take me," Khalji can be heard saying on the recording.

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He didn't know who his abductors were or whether they were members of Isis or Taliban or any other group. But he told his bosses that he was followed from the airport after a failed attempt to get through a checkpoint.

"We fear the worst, hope for the best. But we are also very fearful for his wife," the Makinsters said.

Khalji's wife, whose identity is being withheld to protect her safety, has gone into hiding. She is an Afghan citizen and has been awaiting a visa for two years.

"We are worried about Sean. But I worry most about my daughter-in-law. Sean is a man, doesn't matter what happens with him. But if my daughter-in-law is caught by those animals, we will lose our honor and everything," said the man's father Nazir Khalji.

The younger Khalji grew up in Union City and was employed by a communications company that did work in Afghanistan.

His bosses and his family have been calling politicians, the state department, and contacts on the ground hoping to arrange a rescue. But they say it's futile.

"How do I get him on that list. I don't even know where he's at," said Dan Makinster.

And they say the clock is ticking. With the U.S. planning to end evacuations on Aug. 31, they're afraid they're running out of time to find their friend.

SEE ALSO: Afghan translator who helped California Army captain and family escapes to Belgium

"And unfortunately if you're not out of there and you're not on a plane, you're in deep trouble," Makinster SAID.

At this point, loved ones are doing their best to stay positive, but they're running out of people to call for help.