According to the spokesman for the National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernic) in Maputo city, Hilário Lole, the kidnapping took place at around 6 pm local time (5 pm in Lisbon) in the Polana Caniço A neighborhood, with the young man being removed "by force" from his vehicle by the kidnappers, who were armed with pistols and machine guns. The Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) registered a total of 185 cases of kidnapping and at least 288 people were arrested on suspicion of involvement in this type of crime since 2011, the Minister of the Interior announced last March. "Everything indicates that Maputo city has the highest tendency and incidence of criminal kidnapping cases, followed by Maputo province and, finally, Sofala, with 103, 41 and 18 cases registered, respectively," declared Pascoal Ronda, on March 19. According to the government official, the trends show a "decreasing behavior" since 2020, as a result of "concerted actions" by the Mozambican authorities. "It is also important to mention that from January 2023 to the present day, the PRM has registered nine cases of completed kidnappings and six cases were thwarted. Therefore, there were attempts and these attempts were thwarted, because, in fact, the communities and the police action gave a sign that it could not happen," added the government official, at the time. The Mozambican minister admitted, however, the existence of challenges in combating kidnappings in the country, considering that the wave is creating a feeling of insecurity, which is not favorable for the business environment. "There is an urgent need to increasingly improve our methods of action and our training, as well as our empowerment and adequate technological means to correspond to the problem and face it with the expectation it deserves," added the government official. The wave of kidnappings in Mozambique has affected businesspeople and their families, especially people of Asian descent, which for the authorities requires reflection. Most of the kidnappings committed in Mozambique are prepared outside the country, which makes it difficult to combat this type of crime, the Attorney General of the Republic, Beatriz Buchili, said in parliament on Wednesday. "One of the biggest challenges in combating [kidnappings] is the fact that a large part of the acts of preparation for the execution of the crime and the payment of ransom occur outside the country," she said, during the annual report she gives to parliament. Most of the masterminds live in South Africa, she said. "Therefore, the investigation and instruction necessarily require the use of international legal and judicial cooperation mechanisms, involving countries with objective or subjective connection to the crime, for mutual legal assistance, extradition or information sharing," she added. The annual report of the Attorney General's Office (PGR) admits that "legal and judicial cooperation with South Africa, a neighboring and brotherly country, has not been running at the necessary levels to combat this type of crime, which affects the two countries". The PGR emphasizes that 20 extradition and mutual legal assistance requests were submitted more than a year ago, including from identified masterminds of kidnappings, but Mozambique has not received a response. It also highlights the ongoing efforts to sign an extradition agreement between Mozambique and South Africa, aiming to strengthen cooperation in the fight against organized crime. In the annual report, the PGR points out that in 2023, seven kidnapping criminal proceedings were opened, a 53.3% drop compared to the previous year, in which 15 were registered. Charges were brought in 12 proceedings and five were closed, with nine being carried over to this year. Read Also: Portuguese companies and AI support water management in Maputo network (Portuguese version)