SAPS anti-kidnapping task team arrests 14 suspects

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The South African Police Services’ (SAPS) anti-kidnapping task team in Gauteng arrested 14 suspects in Greenstone Park and Sandton, Johannesburg, yesterday.

The suspects, including three Chinese nationals and two Mozambicans, allegedly kidnapped a Zimbabwean businessman near his workplace on Sunday.

Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe says that the anti-kidnapping task team, with the help of other SAPS units and private security partners, found the victim safe and alive at an address in Diepkloof, Soweto.

The team traced the first eight suspects to an apartment in Greenstone Park and arrested the remaining suspects in Sandton.

Police seized multiple speed point machines, a large sum of cash withdrawn from the victim’s bank account, and two firearms, one of which was stolen during a house robbery in Linden in 2023.

In recent months, SAPS has intercepted several kidnappers linked to syndicates targeting businessmen for ransom.

VIDEO | Spate of kidnappings in South Africa:

#sapsHQ Three Chinese nationals and two Mozambicans are among fourteen kidnappers that have been arrested by the South African Police Service (SAPS) anti-kidnapping task team in Gauteng. The fourteen are alleged to have kidnapped a Zimbabwean businessman on Sunday near his… pic.twitter.com/Ib314iQINU

— SA Police Service 🇿🇦 (@SAPoliceService) July 15, 2024