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NPR brings us this story of lawlessness ahead of the 2016 Olympics in Brazil:
A reported abduction in Brazil is sending shock waves through the sporting world, as the mother-in law of Bernie Ecclestone, the billionaire who runs the Formula One Group, is apparently being held for ransom. From Rio de Janeiro, NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro reports for our Newscast unit:
"Bernie Ecclestone is the head of the Formula One car racing franchise and one of the richest men in Britain. His wife is Brazilian, and her mother was apparently grabbed by criminals in Sao Paulo, who are asking for a $37 million ransom from the billionaire.
"Information is scant and local press have said they won't report details in order to protect the victim. NPR contacted the anti-kidnapping police in Brazil, who declined to comment. Kidnapping in Brazil is rare these days, but security across the country has deteriorated on the back of a historic recession."
While most Olympic events will be held in Rio de Janeiro, some will take place in Sao Paulo and other cities.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by esperto123 on Friday July 29 2016, @12:47AM
Actually it is rare this days, at least the "classical" kidnappings, a couple of decades ago there were several high profile kidnappings and the police did a good job for once around here and either jailed the gangs or made it unprofitable.
What is common these days are a kind of "very short kidnapping", where a group of criminals (and sometimes cops...) grabs you, usually in traffic, and drive you around to ATMs withdrawing as much money as possible, then lets you go. This usually takes only a couple of hours.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 29 2016, @06:56AM
I think that's properly called "highway robbery", not "kidnapping".
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 29 2016, @06:20PM