Kidnapping victim Mohammed Vadi from Bloemfontein will never forget the day he was forced into a car by three gunmen.
“It was midday at my shop when three guys approached me and a friend. I saw these people pulling out guns, and in a nick of a second, they were all over me, saying that I should get into their car. Fearing I would be killed if I resisted, I got into the car, and they drove off,” said Vadi.
“They put something over my head so that I couldn’t see where I was going. I [think I] was drugged as I woke up in a dark room. These people told me that they were at work and that I should call my family [and tell them] to pay them R3-million if I wanted to leave the place alive.
“I didn’t understand why they demanded money, and I was scared to ask.
“These people told me that they were at work and that they needed money fast for my release,” said Vadi.
He said that he realised that he was a victim of kidnapping for ransom and his abductors made it clear to him that if he did not want to be harmed, he needed to cooperate.
“These guys told me that if my family ever involved the police, that was going to be my end. They demanded R3-million and told me that I was wealthy through my business. My family was contacted, and the money was paid for my safe return,” said Vadi.
According to a Statistics SA report in the 2022/2023 financial year, the total number of kidnapping cases in South Africa reached 15 343.
Gauteng had the highest incidences of kidnapping, with 7 818 reported and KwaZulu-Natal had 3 081 cases over the same period.
A businessman who was let go after paying ransom said he was kidnapped by people who have close links with his associates.
He was kidnapped at his business premises in Lenasia, south of Joburg, by three men who forced him into a car.
“I was taken to a secluded area, where I was forced to contact my family to tell them about my kidnapping,” he said.
The kidnappers told his family to pay R5-million for his safe return.
“The kidnappers told my family that if they wanted to see me alive [again] they should pay the money.
“Since they said the police should not be involved, I thought that they would kill me and get away with murder,” said the businessman.
The man said his family was ordered to drop the money at a specific location and he was released as soon as they did.
“I am grateful that I was let go without being harmed after an ordeal that took three weeks, [with me] holed up in a dark place. I was kidnapped through the orders of people the kidnappers said were close to me,” he said.
It is understood that the kidnappers target families they believe have money to pay ransoms.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said official stats for this year on kidnappings were not yet available.
