Cape Town - The Bellville Community Policing Forum (CPF) has expressed relief after a 31-year-old woman, who was kidnapped outside her family’s business in Parow Industria, was reunited with her loved ones.
The woman, from Welgemoed, was rescued in a house in Mfuleni three days after a Western Cape multidisciplinary provincial anti-kidnapping task team had launched a search for her.
This led to the arrest of five suspects for their alleged involvement in the abduction.
Provincial police spokesperson Novela Potelwa said the woman was abducted on June 2 after she left the family business where she works.
“Her vehicle was later discovered abandoned in NY99 in Gugulethu after she failed to return home from work.
“The task team comprising provincial organised crime investigators, crime intelligence, DPCI, special task force members, hostage negotiators, City of Cape Town and the provincial CSI team has been hard at work pursuing leads, utilising several investigative techniques since the kidnapping was reported.
“(The) kidnapped Welgemoed woman is reunited with her family after she was found at a house in Mfuleni on Tuesday afternoon,” said Potelwa.
She said the woman was taken for a medical examination to determine her well-being.
According to Bellville CPF spokesperson Gerda Gerber, they became aware of the incident after the woman’s parents went to the police station and reported her missing.
“Due to the sensitivity of the matter we only shared the news of a missing person with our neighbourhood watch to be on the lookout for anything that could assist in the case.
There is not much we could do. We are relieved that she has been safely (reunited) with her family. Even now we can’t share any information due to the investigation and the suspects have not appeared in court. We also have some unanswered questions and hope as the time goes we will know more,” she said.
The suspects, aged between 25 and 32, face kidnapping, hijacking, human trafficking and extortion charges.
They were expected to appear in court in due course.
Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC Reagen Allen said the swift response by all law enforcement agencies was commended.
“I wish the woman all the strength as she works through this traumatic experience. The courts should send a strong message by handing down the harshest sentence to those guilty of this crime.”
According to the latest crime stats, cases of kidnapping were on the increase in the country but had decreased by 7.7% in the Western Cape, down from 209 cases to 193.
During the period, three ransom cases were reported – one linked to human trafficking and two to extortion.
Cape Town