‘Client’ among those accused of kidnapping KZN businessman

Kenneth Masedza, 39, stumbled into the dock of the Durban magistrate’s court on Monday charged with kidnapping an Indian businessman he had apparently known for years.

The Zimbabwean overshadowed Sanele Gumede, his 34-year-old co-accused, who donned a bright yellow hoodie, with rapper Post Malone’s face plastered on the back.

The two face charges of kidnapping, extortion and possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition.

Someone contacted me and said my brother’s car was in the parking lot, but he was nowhere to be found. Later that evening I received a voicemail, where my brother said he had been kidnapped and they were demanding R450,000 ransom.

—  The businessman's brother

Masedza faces a further charge of entering and remaining in SA illegally.

They were arrested in connection with the kidnapping of a 31-year-old Durban cellphone repair shop owner, who was allegedly bundled into a vehicle by three unknown men outside his business premises in the CBD on Thursday afternoon.

The victim, whose identity has not yet been divulged due to ongoing investigations, was held for two nights by his alleged kidnappers, before a sting operation was set in motion to meet the R450,000 ransom demand for his safe release.

Speaking to Sunday Times Daily, the victim’s brother, who also cannot be identified, said he had been in Zambia when he received the news.

“Someone contacted me and said my brother’s car was in the parking lot, but he was nowhere to be found. Later that evening I received a voicemail, where my brother said he had been kidnapped and they were demanding R450,000 ransom.”

He said he immediately asked friends and family to open a case at the Durban Central police station, before securing a flight to SA that evening.

Sources close to the investigation said detectives, with a private security company, met the family on Friday as a plan was set in motion to nab the culprits.

The family managed to raise R350,000 and a string operation was launched, with an undercover officer accompanying members of the family to a meeting point for the ransom drop-off.

The victim’s brother said the meeting point was changed three times that evening.

“They kept changing the meeting point, and it was getting late.”

By that time it was well after curfew and the victim’s brother managed to negotiate with the kidnappers to meet the next morning.

On Saturday, negotiations resumed and at 3pm the kidnappers directed the family to a shopping centre in Mobeni Heights, south of Durban.

The exchange was done after the family saw the victim was alive and well.

Shortly after the exchange, police pursued the suspected perpetrators, intercepting them on Higginson Highway in Chatsworth.

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Police arrested Masedza and Gumede, allegedly the driver. They recovered the ransom money and cellphones understood to have been used to communicate with the victim’s brother.

The victim’s bank card was also found on one of the accused.

Police spokesperson Col Thembeka Mbele said a follow-up investigation led police to the suspected home of Masedza in Savannah Park, where a 9mm pistol, 15 rounds of ammunition and cellphones were found and seized.

She said more arrests were imminent.

According to the victim’s brother, Masedza was identified as a client who had frequented his brother’s store for the past five years.

Masedza and Gumede were remanded in custody until September 27 for further investigation.

Prosecutor Quintelle Adam said the addresses of the accused needed to be verified, while Masedza’s legal status in the country was under investigation.

A police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity said kidnappings of businessmen in the province occurred frequently.

“These cases are happening more than we know. In most instances the families of the victims don’t come to us because they are warned by the kidnappers that if they involve the police their loved ones will be killed. In most cases the families opt to pay the ransom and then come to us afterwards to investigate. People must not act with emotion in these situations. They need to involve the police.”

In April 2018, the Sunday Times reported that more than 40 businessmen had been kidnapped in SA over the previous three years‚ with sophisticated syndicates demanding ransoms. The police and the Hawks have set up a task team to combat the crime.

SA’s crime stats show a 133% increase in kidnapping cases reported to the police between 2010/11 and 2019/20.