Mozambique: Attorney General proposes freezing bank accounts of kidnap victims – O País

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Mozambique: Attorney General proposes freezing bank accounts of kidnap victims – O País

12:27 CAT | 29 Apr 2025

Photo: O País

The Attorney General of the Republic, Américo Letela, suggested that the bank accounts of kidnapping victims, their companies and close family members be frozen, to avoid paying ransom and discourage this type of crime.

Mozambique’s Attorney General Américo Letela this Tuesday presented to parliament the annual report on the activities of the Public Prosecutor’s Office (PGR), stressing during his speech that kidnapping had been a particular challenge, especially in Maputo province.

The Attorney General said that kidnappings require the adoption of additional measures to strengthen the capacity of the institutions with direct responsibility for preventing and combating them.

“In the period under analysis [2024], 32 cases were instituted, compared to 60 in the same previous period, a significant reduction of 46.7%. Despite these efforts, it is still difficult to identify and neutralize the perpetrators of these crimes, firstly due to the highly sophisticated and complex way in which the networks operate, and secondly due to the fact that some of them act from outside the country,” he said.

For Letela, the prevalence of kidnapping indicates that additional efforts must be made, with the collaboration of society, to report situations that indicate the preparation or execution of the crime. “We must also intensify interaction with other countries in the region, whose investigations indicate the existence of a connection with the suspects in the preparation of the crime or in the payment of the ransom,” he recommended.

Among several measures, the Attorney General suggested the adoption of measures such as the freezing of the assets of the victims, their companies and bank accounts [and those] of close family members to discourage kidnapping by preventing the payment of ransoms. He explained that this is a measure that has already been adopted by several countries.

A Procuradoria-geral da República propõe o congelamento de fundos e bens de familiares e vítimas de raptos para evitar o pagamento de resgate. #pgr #raptosemmocambique #stvnoticias #gruposoico
Veja com mais detalhes na https://t.co/3GxkwFucsx pic.twitter.com/9nuian6JK9

— stvnoticias (@stvnoticias_mz) April 29, 2025

The Chief Public Prosecutor also highlighted that the infiltration of organized crime into public and private institutions, especially those of justice administration, compromising efforts to combat especially kidnappings, since it weakens investigation and the bringing to accountability of offenders.

“In fact, we continue to see situations involving some people responsible for preventing and combating this crime, such as some members of the PRM [Police of the Republic of Mozambique], who are involved in the preparation, facilitation or execution of kidnappings, as well as [situations of] some magistrates, who, motivated by corrupt schemes, guarantee impunity or favour offenders through their decisions,” Américo Letela said.

Source: O País