JEDDAH, 9 April 2005 — It sounds like organized crime in Jeddah is getting more innovative and modernizing thievery to a new level of sophistication. Apparently, and with the police aware of it, a number of African gangsters have discovered a safe, unique way to gain cash. The new method targets limousine drivers and consists of stealing the driver’s belongings, including money, valuables and official documents. It doesn’t end there. The cunning criminals finish by selling the victims’ official documents on the black market — back to the victims themselves. The pricing, which depends on the expiration date of the ID, can run up to SR1,500.

The process is simple, yet sharply and craftily planned. The mobsters, whose members never number less than three dressed in the Saudi custom, stop the taxi casually without raising suspicion. Then the racketeers ask to be driven to a deserted area, and that’s when the caper quickly unfolds. The gangster seated in the front seat suddenly grabs the car keys from the ignition. His partners, seated in back, spring into action. One attacks the driver from behind and holds a knife to the victim’s throat while the third assailant separates the driver from all his belongings.

Okaz daily met Malek Omran, a taxi driver who’s survived two of the strong-arm robberies.

Rather than reporting the incidents to police, Omran’s colleagues advised him to seek out the criminals and buy back his personal belongings.

“Don’t waste your time at the police department, head directly to the Somali souk located in Bab Makkah,” his friends advised.

What happened next was like a scene from an old gangster movie.

After a few bewildering minutes at the souk, an African man approached him apprehensively and asked him if he was looking for something in particular. Omran then cried spontaneously: “My Iqama!” After that, they negotiated on the price and settled on SR800, considering the iqama soon would expire. Then came the “drop.”

The crime boss contacted Omran after a 24-hour wait and told him to go to a place and hang the money in one of the garbage containers on the street. After doing so, he told him to walk ahead 20 meters without turning around and look for his iqama in the trash.

His other belongings are long gone, but at least he has his iqama. That is, until the gangsters strike again.