Mozambique: Portugal monitoring kidnapping of Portuguese-Mozambican woman in Maputo

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Mozambique: Portugal monitoring kidnapping of Portuguese-Mozambican woman in Maputo

5:32 CAT | 03 Nov 2023

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Lusa]

Portugal is “monitoring through diplomatic and consular posts in Maputo” the situation of a young Portuguese-Mozambican woman kidnapped by three armed men on Wednesday in the Mozambican capital as she was leaving her home, an official source told Lusa.

“The situation is being monitored through the diplomatic and consular posts in Maputo, which are in contact with the family,” said a source from Portugal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A group of three armed men kidnapped the 26-year-old woman on the morning of the 1st as she was leaving her home in Maputo, at around 07:50 local time (05:50 in Lisbon), with the intention of going to a gym in the Mozambican capital, according to the police spokesman, Lionel Muchina, speaking to Lusa on the day of the kidnapping.

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The same source added that the police forces, including the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC), are working together to clarify the case, and that there are “many clues” about the kidnapping.

The circumstances of the kidnapping are somewhat unusual, given that the woman is an ordinary Portuguese-Mozambican citizen of Indian descent, who is not reported to have any large personal possessions or to belong to a particular group of targets in this type of situation.

“We carried out an assessment on the ground and found that the family has no business history,” Muchina emphasised last Wednesday.

Since 2020, some Mozambican cities, especially provincial capitals, have again been affected by a wave of kidnappings, mainly targeting businesspeople or their families.

Mozambique’s prime minister, Adriano Maleiane, announced in parliament last May that officers had already been selected to work in a special unit to combat the kidnappings affecting the country’s main cities.

“The first phase, which has already been finalised,” of the creation of the anti-kidnapping unit, “consisted of selecting the officers” and the next stage will be the specialisation of the staff, with the support of cooperation partners, he said.

According to a balance sheet presented by the head of the Mozambican government at the time, 28 cases of kidnapping have been recorded in Mozambique since 2021, of which “15 have been fully resolved”.

Source: Lusa