Ukrainian security officers in the Odesa region have busted an organized-crime group which kidnapped foreign nationals and demanded ransom.
“It has been established that the group included four perpetrators: a Ukrainian woman, two Pakistanis and a native of North Caucasus. The perpetrators would track down well-off foreign tourists and operate according to a well-trodden scenario: using dating and social-networking websites they would lure a foreigner into a meeting where instead of the expected date he would get into the hands of his kidnappers,” a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) said on Sept. 23.
The perpetrators constantly changed places where they held their captives, as well as phone numbers from which they contacted their families, the spokesperson said.
“On Sept. 19, a British citizen who came to Odesa as a tourist fell into the trap. Having replied to a Ukrainian Bride invitation, the Englishman found himself taken hostage. His ordeal lasted for several days in a dark basement – he was told to call his relatives and tell them about the $6,000 ransom for his release,” the spokesperson said.
His relatives were able to contact the SBU via diplomatic channels, the spokesperson said. As a result of a special operation, the perpetrators were apprehended and the foreign national freed.
The suspects are facing charges under Article 146 part two (illegal imprisonment) and Article 187 part two (conspiracy to commit robbery) of the Ukrainian Criminal Code.
