Latest Kidnap Ransom & Extortion News
Here are some stories from around the globe that we found interesting. They were found in the Clayton KR&E Monitor.
Ethiopia, 20 March 2007: Rebels from northern Ethiopia who claimed responsibility for abducting five Europeans this month say they will kidnap foreigners who venture into their territory, Eritrean state media reported. A separatist group fighting for greater autonomy of the barren Afar region straddling Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti made its first direct claim for the kidnapping of five Europeans. The chairperson of the Afar Revolutionary Democratic Union Front (ARDUF) said foreigners traveling to northern Ethiopia need permission from the group or else they risk being kidnapped. There has been no word on the fate of eight Ethiopians who vanished while traveling with the Europeans. (news24.com, 21 March 2007)
Somalia, 2 April 2007: Somali pirates armed with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades hijacked an Indian cargo ship for ransom as it was preparing to dock at Mogadishu’s port. The vessel was delivering nearly 900 tons of cargo when approximately 10 pirates in a speedboat overpowered its 14 crew members. The vessel, carrying various goods, including cooking oil, second hand clothing and rice, has sailed for Puntland, a semiautonomous state in northeastern Somalia from where pirates often operate. According to a Kenyan Seafarers Assistance Program official, the crew managed to call and report the hijacking. The official stated that the pirates have already made a demand for ransom. (msnbc.msn.com, 4 April 2007)
Malaysia, 28 March 2007: Police officers arrested a gang of kidnappers in Kuala Lumpur’s Cheras suburb, who had abducted a businessman from his Ketumbar Hill Condominium home on 21 March. The kidnappers burst into the 49-year-old businessman’s house, attacked his son, stole RM70,000 and forced him into a waiting car. The kidnappers then took him to a safe house in Bukit Mewah where he was handcuffed and held captive. The victim’s son contacted police officials after receiving a ransom call from the kidnappers. Guided by the police, he negotiated for seven hours and managed to bring the sum down to RM15, 000 and agreed on a drop-off location for the ransom in Cheras town. Police officials tailed the kidnappers back to their hideout from there. A police raid team rescued the businessman and arrested four men in the house and five other people — four men and a woman — nearby. Police officers seized various items, including weapons and a forged police authority card. A police official stated that initial investigations indicate the victim knew his kidnappers but declined to elaborate when asked for a motive for the crime. (thestar.com.my, 29 March 2007)
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