Mozambican police arrest three kidnapping suspects in Maputo – Africa

Mozambique’s National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernic) arrested three men suspected of involvement in kidnappings that took place in the capital, Maputo, an official source announced THIS MONDAY.

Two of the detainees are suspected of the abduction of an 8-year-old child that occurred on Friday in the Jardim neighborhood, in the city of Maputo, said Sernic spokesperson Hilário Lole during a press conference in Maputo.

The child, kidnapped when leaving school, was rescued on Sunday at the home of one of the suspects in the Unit 07 neighborhood, in the Mozambican capital, after the mother reported the case to the police.

“The child was rescued healthy, he is well and is now with his family,” said Hilário Lole, adding that a pistol was also seized from the kidnappers who identify themselves as Mozambican police officers.

“We will still contact the general command as well as that of the city of Maputo to determine whether they are really effective”, said the spokesperson, noting that there was an exchange of gunfire between the police and the suspects while rescuing the child.

The third man was arrested on suspicion of involvement in two kidnappings that occurred in November and December 2023.

“This man will have participated in the execution of these two kidnappings, of which we already have four individuals detained and fortunately one of the victims ended up being rescued from captivity in December”, said Hilário Lole.

The Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) recorded a total of 185 cases of kidnapping and at least 288 people were detained on suspicion of involvement in this type of crime since 2011, the Minister of the Interior announced in March.

“Everything indicates that the city of Maputo has the highest trend and incidence of criminal cases of kidnapping, followed by the province of Maputo and, finally, Sofala, with a record of 103, 41 and 18 cases, respectively”, declared Pascoal Ronda, on 19 of March.

According to the government official, trends show “decreasing behavior” since 2020, as a result of “concerted actions” by the Mozambican authorities.

The wave of kidnappings in Mozambique has affected businesspeople and family members, especially people of Asian descent, which the authorities believe requires reflection.

The majority of kidnappings committed in Mozambique are prepared outside the country, which makes combating this type of crime difficult, the Attorney General of the Republic, Beatriz Buchili, said in April in parliament.

In the annual information from the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) it is admitted that “legal and judicial cooperation with South Africa, a neighboring and sister country, has not reached the levels necessary to combat this type of crime, which affects both countries”.

The PGR emphasizes that 20 requests for extradition and mutual legal assistance were submitted more than a year ago, including from identified perpetrators of kidnappings, but Mozambique received no response.

It also highlights the ongoing efforts to sign an extradition agreement between Mozambique and South Africa, aiming to reinforce cooperation in the fight against organized crime.

In the annual report, the PGR points out that in 2023 seven criminal cases of kidnapping were opened, a drop of 53.3% compared to the previous year, in which 15 were registered.

Indictments were filed in 12 cases and five were archived, nine of which were carried over to this year.