Paying a ransom demand for a kidnapping is a criminal offence in South Africa

It’s been six weeks since a resident was kidnapped from the parking lot of the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens with no resolution to the case.

Owner of SCP Security Clive Maher says, “I have not had any information from the family that I can share, but I can confirm the man has not returned home.”

Brigadier Brenda Muridili, Police head of corporate communications for Gauteng said, “For the quarter October to December, the Johannesburg district recorded 966 counts of kidnappings.

She said the top three circumstances or causative factors include ransom demands, extortion, and human trafficking. While each case has its own merits, the kidnappers usually call the individuals next of kin to make ransom demands.

“The police are not involved in the facilitation of a ransom demand payment as doing so is a criminal offence.” This is due to the fact that it defeats the ends of justice and could make the person paying the ransom an accessory to the crime after the fact, this is according to the Criminal Procedure Act.

She says in instances where the family pay a ransom, they do so out of their own accord.

“The police’s Anti-Kidnapping Task Team always strives to rescue victims of kidnapping without being involved in the ransom negotiations.”

“It is very important that as soon as the family realises that their loved one has been kidnapped, for whatever reason, they must report the matter to the police immediately.”
She says they are aware that the kidnappers would tell the family not to involve the police but if the victim has any chance of being rescued alive, full cooperation by the family is essential.

“The police will mobilise all the necessary stakeholders including crime intelligence, hostage negotiators and others to trace the last known movements of the victim to determine where they might have been kidnapped from and where they might be detained.”

However, she is not at liberty to discuss operational methods that the team implements to achieve the goal of bringing the victim home.

Mike Sears has been in the private security industry for over 25 years, has a degree in psychology and criminology and has a national diploma in security management.

“Kidnapping has spiked recently which is worrying. I believe it is becoming a lower risk, higher yield criminal activity for people who used to target Cash In Transit vehicles or other crimes.”

On the continent, South Africa has taken the poll position as the country with the most kidnappings. “Nigeria used to be in the top place but their numbers have subsided significantly. The majority of our cases however are related to armed robberies and hijackings.”
“High-risk individuals or people who think they might be a target need to do a careful and thorough assessment of where weak spots are and how to mitigate against a potential threat.”

Here are some tips to keep in mind from Sears

• Always have up-to-date photographs of family members in different situations to give authorities different views of the face.
• Discuss with your loved ones or colleagues how you would like them to engage with kidnappers. Have a plan of action that is rehearsed and if needed, how funds could be raised.
• Improve your situational awareness. If you notice something odd, move and alert an appropriate person or authority.
• Identify soft target places like dropping children off at school – see how this can be done differently by engaging with specialists.
• Keep a personal tracking device somewhere on your person that is not visible like an Apple AirPod and have a DNA sample safely stored.

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