Express Kidnapping: The New Form of Unlawful Imprisonment

For some time, express kidnapping has been gaining popularity among organized gangs because it doesn't require a large infrastructure. This kidnapping technique, born in Latin America, permits criminals to act in reduced groups and almost always take away considerable loot. Proof of its efficiency are police statistics showing that in 2006, in Madrid alone there occurred one express kidnapping every two days.

Although there does exist a minimum of premeditation, criminals choose their victims almost at random. Any indicator of buying power, such as an upscale auto, jewelry or latest generation cellular phone, can become fateful criteria for being chosen as a victim.

Those who perpetrate this type of attack usually operate in groups of two or three, generally working out of a vehicle. They aren't after much more than to make a quick buck, less than they would be able to in a traditional, large-scale kidnapping. The swiftness of the crime is the key to its popularity and practice in the criminal world.

Modus Operandi

The modus operandi of the kidnappers is very simple: first they approach the victim, in the street or at their business; they take them in their car, or the victim's. Then they obligate them to withdraw money from an ATM, take their belongings, and intimidate them with blows and threats. They steal the victim's personal identification and quickly contact their family to demand the payment of a ransom within a few hours, or at most a couple of days. They always make it clear that the victim's safety depends on there being no police intervention.

Not having the infrastructure to detain victims for longer than 48 hours, express kidnappers usually ask for relatively small quantities of money. It's calculated that the sum they generally end up receiving, following negotiations with the family, rarely exceeds 15,000 euros.

Origins
Express kidnapping has its origins in Latin America, especially in countries like Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico and Argentina. Gangs of delinquents, often sicarios working "overtime," started out using a similar modus operandi, Kidnapping and Robbery. The latter differs from Express Kidnapping in that there is no negotiation; the victim is simply held for a few hours and made, under threat, to withdraw money from ATMs. The kidnappers also rob vehicles - later abandoning them - and other articles of value.

Without a doubt, the massive proliferation of credit cards is one of the biggest factors in growth of this type of criminal activity. No longer able to instantly steal cash, criminals have opted to detain victims some hours, convincing them to withdraw money directly from ATMs in order to earn immediate release.

In Latin America, criminals who commit this type of crime are usually under the age of 25 and have criminal records. They are repeat offenders, petty thieves, and in many cases they already know the victim or have obtained information about him or her through acquaintances, neighbors, or prior investigation. Express Kidnapping has lost no time in being successfully imported to Spain, where it's wreaking havoc. What has changed is the profile of the perpetrators. In Spain, it's usually professional criminals; it's gone from petty thieves to sicarios with links to the mafia.

The attackers are usually South American and well acquainted with the crime's success in their home countries. The jeweler Fermín Larrainzar was victim of one of the most notorious cases, in which a group of nine Columbian assailants managed to steal money and jewels with an estimated value of 3 million euros.

Antecedents in Spain

Another of Spain's most shocking cases was that of Fructuoso López , owner of the famous sportswear brand Joma. The house of the prosperous business magnet, located in the small town of Portillo, Toledo, was the target of a surprise attack by four masked delinquents. They couldn't find Fructuoso but they did rob a small amount of money, and upon discovering the man was not home yet, abducted his wife, daughter and a family employee. They freed them a few hours later, after withdrawing large sums of money from ATMs and taking the car of López's wife.

Express kidnapping is not only for criminals with purely economic interests. Terrorist organizations like ETA have also have had great success using this method, in imitation of the Columbian FARCs, who have been doing it for some time.

ETA got away with 700,000 euros in the express kidnapping of three Navarian businessmen in 2002, according to documents obtained from terrorist Ibón Fernández Iradí, alias "Susper". The terrorist group GRAPO also attempted, unsuccessfully, an express kidnapping in Zaragoza which left Ana Isabel Herrero dead.

This method doesn't cease to be surprising, as anyone can be a potential victim. You don't have to be a millionaire, or even close to it, to be picked as a target. Even so, don't forget that what these criminals are most interested in is not harming you, but getting what they need as quickly as possible.

By Carlos Cabezas Lopez