Johannesburg – A Lenasia businessman has been safely reunited with his family after he was kidnapped three days ago.
Colonel Athlenda Mathe, Police national spokesperson, said thirty-four-year-old Luqman Kazi was kidnapped on his way to work on Tuesday. A multidisciplinary team, headed by the Anti-Kidnapping Task Team, was assembled to rescue the victim, and apprehend the kidnappers.
On Thursday night the team pounced on four separate locations at the same time. At the first address in Lawley, the team rescued the victim and found a 9mm unlicensed firearm and arrested three suspects.
The other three addresses were in Lenasia. The team arrested three more suspects, including a forty-three-year-old Mozambican man who Mathe confirmed was the kingpin of “this particular syndicate”.
Cash of R6 million was found, which police believe is ransom money paid from previous kidnappings. An unlicensed AK47 rifle, ammunition, one hijacked vehicle, the VW Polo utilised in the kidnapping of the businessman, military grade signal jammers as well as various vehicle registration number plates were also found and seized during the operation.
Mathe confirmed the nationality of the suspects stating, “Some of them are South Africans and some of them are Mozambicans.”
The six individuals face charges of kidnapping, extortion, money laundering, possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, as well as possession of a hijacked motor vehicle. As organised crime continues to rise, the South African government has put together dedicated teams and Mathe is confident they are making progress.
“At a national level we have a dedicated team that looks into combating and addressing these kidnappings, especially kidnappings where a ransom is involved. At national level we have established a multidisciplinary team and at a provincial level we have also established multidisciplinary teams that assist the national team in addressing these kidnappings at a national level. We are not where we want to be because for us, one kidnapping is one too many. We would like an ideal situation where there are no kidnappings at all. We are confident that we are making progress and making inroads in addressing these kidnappings, especially these new crime trends where ransom demands are being made.”
It is believed the ransom money is used to fund other illegal activities within the country and abroad.
“As a South African Police Service, we do not encourage the payment of ransom because paying the ransom would not always guarantee the person’s safe return. We always encourage families to contact us immediately so that we can immediately assemble a team with the view of rescuing this victim and apprehending those that are involved.”
Unlike most criminal enterprises, syndicates lean on each other. A car stolen in South Africa is sold through another syndicate across the border. The South African government is aware of this and they “are working with the Mozambican police agency” to break down these links, said Mathe.
“We do have a seventy-two-hour activation plan with Mozambique where they would assist us in apprehending suspects, tracing them, and tracking them. We also share information. So already between Mozambique and South Africa we are utilising the SADC (Southern African Development Community) protocol that is there to work together and closely with the Mozambican police agency. We find that most of the crimes that are committed involve Mozambican nationals and South African nationals. We are working closely together to distribute information.”
Police commissioner Gen Khehla Sitole praised the team for the swift response and acting decisively.
“This success would not have been possible if it weren’t for the dedication and persistent efforts of members from crime intelligence, the national kidnapping task team, the special task force, organised crime unit, Gauteng flying squad and Gauteng saturation unit, Ekurhuleni metro police, visible policing, and the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation. We also appreciate the assistance of private security who continue to be our eyes and ears,” he said.
