The South African police announced, this Saturday, the arrest, on Wednesday (23), of the ringleader of kidnappings targeting mostly businessmen, carried out between Mozambique and that neighboring country.
According to our sources, - which differ as to the man's nationality, between Mozambican and South African, - the South African police captured the 37-year-old and three other men, allegedly allied with his kidnapping group, in Brackenhurs, in southern Johannesburg.
An alleged kidnapping kingpin and his three accomplices will appear in a JHB court tomorrow after being arrested this weekend. The gang is linked to three cases, and possibly more. The suspected kingpin is a 37-year-old man. 6000 Mandrax tablets, luxury vehicles and cash seized. pic.twitter.com/5gvH93ONT3
- Yusuf Abramjee (@Abramjee) February 27, 2022
The indicted men, already in police custody, were found in possession of three luxury cars, six tons of mandrax (a drug that acts as a sedative and hypnotic) and unspecified amounts of cash, a receipt for the sale of a 1.9 million rand property in Bryanston, several luxury brand clothes.
#sapsHQ At this address, police found and seized 3 vehicles, 6 000 Mandrax tablets, cash, a receipt of sale for a R1,9 MIL property in Bryanston, several high end luxury brand clothing, all of which police believe were acquired through money received from ransom cash payments. ME pic.twitter.com/4ZzzKkewWD2
- SA Police Service 🇿🇦 (@SAPoliceService) February 26, 2022
Police believe that all of this "would have been acquired with the money from ransom payments."
The South African police said that a fifth member of this criminal network was also arrested on Thursday in Benoni, about 40 kilometers east of the South African capital, another significant Portuguese and Portuguese-speaking region.
#sapsHQ On 24/02, the team continued with the tracing of another suspect who is part of this syndicate. The team kept observation at an identified address in Benoni and moved in to arrest the suspect. Another high performance vehicle was seized and the suspect was apprehended ME pic.twitter.com/Bd9yPbegGe
- SA Police Service 🇿🇦 (@SAPoliceService) February 26, 2022
It is suspected that this group was the same that kidnapped Mozambican Jahyr Abdula, son of businessman Salimo Abdula, on October 15, 2021, and conducted other kidnappings in Gauteng (Johannesburg) in Maputo.
"The mastermind and his associates are accused of kidnapping and demanding ransom in several high profile cases, including that of Jahyr Abdula, a Mozambican citizen and his friend, kidnapped on October 15, 2021," the South African police said.