Hostage negotiator says nobody is kidnapped by accident
Former police hostage negotiator says kidnappings of the middle classes have been increasing over the last few years.
Gérard Labuschagne is a former hostage negotiator for the police and like others says kidnappings of the kind seen at the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens are increasing.
“High-value kidnappings where a ransom of many millions are of course still taking place, but the middle classes are now being targeted with increasing frequency.”
He described two recent cases where a member of a church was hijacked because the criminals thought the church had money and another where a franchise supermarket owner was taken.
“These kinds of cases are not going to bring in millions and millions but can still bring in significant sums of money.”
He says no kidnapping is random as it takes planning and coordination. “Nobody is just snatched by being in the wrong place at the wrong time – it is methodical and deliberate. If someone feels they might be a target it is also true, that nobody is kidnapped when they have close protection private security officers keeping them safe.”
He like Clive Maher, owner of SCP Security, says kidnappings are perceived to be less risky than Cash In Transit (CIT) heists and often with greater rewards. “Either ex-CIT robbers or possibly members of larger kidnapping groups who have now branched out on their own.”
Labuschagne says statistics taken from the police for kidnapping are impossible to read correctly. “If we are talking about kidnapping in the sense of this article where a person is taken, a sum of money is demanded, negotiations take place and the person is hopefully released, then Saps figures aren’t accurate.”
He says the situations where kidnapping is the charge laid are so broad, they include things like a woman being dragged into a field and raped, or an angry partner locking the romantic partner in the bathroom.
“It is also realistic to keep in mind that not all kidnappings will be reported to the police.”
Asked about what families should do when a loved one is kidnapped, he said, “Do not waste time in bringing in the professionals.”
There are two processes at play simultaneously.
“One is the criminal investigation where evidence and clues are interrogated to try and find out where the victim is and who might have him or her. The other is the negotiation that inevitably takes place to arrive at a sum of money the kidnappers are willing to accept to release their captive.”
He says there is no onus on the family to use a police hostage negotiator. “You can hire anyone you want to do this but please check their references and make sure they are legitimate and with enough expertise to do the job well.”
He describes families as hiring private investigators to try and do some of this work, or they attempt to handle it themselves. “This just wastes precious time.”
“It is essential that from the beginning a professional negotiator orchestrates dealings. A family member may be the one on the phone talking to the kidnappers, but every word, sentence and thought will be choreographed by the negotiator behind the scenes.”
He says victims are usually not tortured as the kidnappers do not want to have to look after an injured person but may hurt them enough over the phone to ‘rile up the family’.
Handing over the money
– High-value professional kidnapping cases with many millions will often be done with e-currency like Bitcoin.
– A step below that is often through platforms like Monito where a person in Pakistan, for example, can collect the funds that have been provided.
– The least safe option is an actual cash drop but that is risky for the kidnappers and will be for less professional players.
After the ransom is paid
The victim will usually be dropped at a random place and left to their own devices. “Sometimes they might be given a few Rands to make a call or catch a lift, but they do find a way to get help and be reunited with their families.”
How long this takes, Labuschagne says it is impossible to say. “It all depends on the sums of money demanded and how long the kidnappers are prepared to wait. I have had clients who were kept for months. For lesser amounts, it can be a couple of weeks.”
Related article: Micro kidnappings to replace lucrative cash in transit heists says SCP Security
