Image Source: The Witness
Local – Kidnappings are becoming more frequent in South Africa, and criminals are becoming increasingly desperate and violent. Reports suggest that kidnappers are targeting a wider range of victims and using brutal methods to extort their families.
According to Yaseen Theba, Director at Vision Tactical, the kidnapping landscape has shifted significantly. Once focused on wealthy individuals, syndicates are now going after anyone they believe can yield a payout, including ordinary working-class people.
He explained that syndicates are adopting extreme methods to extract ransoms quickly, including filming and sending disturbing videos of victims to their families to create urgency. These videos often show victims being abused, terrorised, or humiliated—tactics meant to break families emotionally and force them to pay as fast as possible.
While these tactics are effective in pressuring families, they have devastating effects on the victims. Many are too traumatised or ashamed to report it to police or testify against their abductors.
“No one wants to see your family member or loved one in that situation. Apart from just becoming embarrassing, it’s humiliating. The other challenge that we face is that those victims, even when they do come out, because of the videos that were taken of them, they are very uneasy and unwilling to talk to police.”
“The trauma that they deal with—and, of course, going to court—means that even if you get the suspects, you find that the humiliation these victims face leads them not to comply with the police. They basically go into a shell and deal with their trauma on their own,” he said.
SMread| ‘Align with Government Priorities’, Hendricks Tells NGOs
Public Safety: Theba’s Advice
Theba urged South Africans to stay alert and not assume they are safe simply because they are not wealthy. He said everyone is vulnerable and should take personal security seriously.
People should remain aware of their surroundings, avoid predictable routines, and act immediately if someone goes missing. He also warned against the misconception that missing persons can only be reported after 24 hours.
“That is false,” he said. “The first few minutes and hours in a kidnapping case are crucial. Once police get onto the case and bring the right resources to the table, they can establish exactly what’s happening and hopefully get to the victim quicker.”
