Three held over kidnapping

Police has arrested a man and two women in Gisozi Sector, Gasabo District for allegedly kidnapping a man called Modeste Sengoga, to extort a ransom of Rwf1 million from his wife.

Wednesday, September 04, 2013

Police has arrested a man and two women in Gisozi Sector, Gasabo District for allegedly kidnapping a man called Modeste Sengoga, to extort a ransom of Rwf1 million from his wife.

The suspects are currently detained at Remera Police Station.

The victim told the police that he was kidnapped while he was looking for land to buy last Friday. Sengoga asked his friend, the female would-be captor, about where he can find the land and she directed him to her accomplice who posed as a broker. The broker later introduced a third person who claimed to be the owner of the land.

Before Sengoga could figure out what was going on, the ‘broker’ pulled out a knife and threatened to stab him if he didn't give them Rwf1 million.

The wife, who didn’t know that the husband was kidnapped, sent Rwf500,000 through Tigo Cash for a down payment on land, but it ended up in the hands of the captors.

Sengoga’s wife got suspicious after her husband put her under too much pressure to send the remaining Rwf500,000 to finalise the purchase, yet he had not returned home the previous night. She reported the matter to police.

Police then launched investigations leading to the arrest of one of the captors as he tried to withdraw the second portion of the money from a Tigo Cash Agent in Gisozi. Police used him to trace his accomplices.

Once declared guilty, the suspects will be sentenced to between two and five years in prison.