Parents hunt their kids' kidnappers themselves due to police corruption
For 15 years, Mexico's rate for kidnapping for ransom has ranked first in the world. Though a special anti-kidnapping police unit was established in 2014, still, 12 to 15 people are abducted every day and almost all victims are subjected to physical violence. Criminals usually kidnap a relative of importance to someone who has money and wait for the ransom. But even after the payment captors do not rush to free the victim; they can keep the person hostage and demand more money for years.
‘I paid twice in two years and I'd have kept on paying because it gave us a chance to catch them,’ says the father of an abducted young girl. He demanded that the police detained the criminals when transferring money, but they refused to. The father claims that the police could have arrested the gang many times though they were simply unwilling to do so. He started his own investigation and found his daughter - but by that time she was already shot dead. The devastated father blames the government for corruption and reluctance to take actions against such criminals. What else makes kidnapping flourish in Mexico?