JEDDAH, 23 April 2003 — Police have arrested a three-member gang of expatriates involved in kidnapping women, Okaz reported yesterday.
Police have identified the Bangladeshi gang members as Shaheed Ul-Islam, Saifuddin and Hilal. Shaheed, wanted for prior criminal offenses, is said to be the ringleader.
Security officers found out about the gang when an Asian expatriate worker reported that his wife had been kidnapped while out shopping, the Arabic daily said. The kidnappers asked the Asian worker to pay SR10,000 in ransom for the safe return of his wife.
Police tracked down the kidnappers within 48 hours after receiving the information as they raided the gang’s hideout in the Faisaliya district in north Jeddah.
“They found not only the Asian man’s wife but also three other women held by the kidnappers at a house in the district,” the paper said.
