In this article, we will take a look at the 20 most common places to get kidnapped.
Kidnapping is the act of forcibly abducting, taking, or confining a person against their will or without their consent. In first-world countries, the most common form of kidnapping involves a parent abducting their own child, typically when estranged from the other parent and lacking legal custody rights. This kind of parental kidnapping can stem from various motivations, including a desire to inflict emotional distress on the other parent, concerns about losing access to the child, or apprehensions regarding the other parent’s influence on the child’s well-being. Although less frequent, there are also instances of children being abducted for more sinister purposes, such as human trafficking or sexual exploitation. In third-world countries, kidnappings often carry political or economic motivations. Some kidnappings are orchestrated by insurgents as acts of terrorism, designed to draw attention to their cause or to coerce government compliance with their demands. Additionally, individuals may carry out abductions to generate funds, either by holding the victim for ransom or by selling them to human traffickers.
Children are most likely to be kidnapped in the United States. A disheartening reality unfolds every 40 seconds as a child becomes a victim of kidnapping or abduction. Annually, approximately 840,000 children are reported missing, with the F.B.I. estimating that the majority, between 85% and 90%, are indeed children. While a significant portion of these cases see swift resolution within hours, there remains a subset characterized by the enduring absence of a child, either permanently or for a prolonged period.
In America, people are most likely to get kidnapped inside their own homes. Half of all reported abductions in the United States stem from family-related incidents. Family abductions, primarily carried out by parents, exhibit a notably higher prevalence of female perpetrators compared to other types of kidnappings. Young children under the age of 6 are the primary targets of family abductions, which frequently unfold within the context of acrimonious divorce or child custody disputes between parents. Law enforcement faces distinct challenges when dealing with family abductions, as the child may be reluctant to leave the abductor, and other family members may actively assist in concealing and supporting the abducting parent.
Non-family abductions encompass kidnappings carried out by acquaintances and strangers. Acquaintance abductions constitute 27% of all child abductions and exhibit a disproportionately high involvement of juvenile perpetrators. This category also presents the highest incidence of female and teenage victims and is frequently linked to additional crimes, including sexual and physical assaults. Conversely, stranger abductions typically occur in outdoor settings. Among the various abduction types, stranger abductions are most likely to involve the use of firearms and are often associated with sexual assault in female victims and robbery in male victims.
Kidnapping for ransom has evolved into an escalating global menace. Previously synonymous with Colombia and the broader Latin American region, this crime has now proliferated across the globe, rendering it a peril that both businesses dispatching employees overseas and individual travelers must not underestimate. Companies and individuals engaged in operations or travel within these areas must maintain a heightened awareness of the associated risks and take requisite security measures. Establishing a comprehensive emergency response plan is crucial should they fall prey to this rapidly expanding criminal activity. For travelers, adopting a discreet profile, diversifying routines, and refraining from disclosing company affiliations or the nature of their business to strangers in the host country are essential precautions.
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Our Methodology
In order to create our list of the 20 most common places to get kidnapped, we used data encompassing kidnapping rates by country. We based our list on incidents per 100,000 people according to the data provided by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in 2018. In addition, we conducted thorough research and gathered data from different related sources as well. By using this metric, we were able to come up with our compilation of the 20 most common places to get kidnapped. Moreover, kidnapping, alongside factors like murder rates, the occurrence of sexual assaults, and a country’s current state of conflict, plays a pivotal role in determining a nation’s placement within the rankings of the Most Dangerous Countries in the World.
So without further ado, let us now start to discuss our list of the 20 most common places to get kidnapped.
20 Most Common Places to Get Kidnapped
20. Mauritius
Rate of Kidnapping: 3.997
Ranking 20th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped is Mauritius. Mauritius exhibited an average of 3.9 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals, reaching a minimum of 2.7 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2009 and peaking at 4 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals in 2011.
19. Ecuador
Rate of Kidnapping: 4.408
Analyzing data spanning from 2003 to 2017 in Ecuador, the average rate stood at 1.8 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals. The lowest recorded figure was 0.2 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2009, while the highest reached 7.2 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals in 2015. The most recent data point, from 2017, reports a rate of 4.41 kidnappings per 100,000 people.
18. Benin
Rate of Kidnapping: 4.743
Benin was able to land in the 18th spot on our list of the most common places to get kidnapped. Benin maintained a consistent average of 4.7 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals, experiencing both its minimum and maximum figures of 4.7 kidnappings per 100,000 people in the year 2017.
17. India
Rate of Kidnapping: 5.111
Ranking 17th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped is India. In 2013, India reported a kidnapping rate of 5.1 cases per 100,000 people. Notably, this rate had risen from 2.1 cases per 100,000 individuals in 2004, indicating a consistent growth trend over the years, with an average annual increase of 11.04%.
16. Germany
Rate of Kidnapping: 5.489
Over the period spanning from 2004 to 2018, Germany’s kidnapping rate exhibited significant fluctuations, generally showing an upward trajectory and culminating at 5.5 cases per 100,000 people in 2018. Germany was also ranked among our list of the 30 Countries with Most Kidnappings.
15. France
Rate of Kidnapping: 5.904
France ranks 15th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped. France registered a kidnapping rate of 5.9 cases per 100,000 people in 2016. Despite notable fluctuations in France’s kidnapping rate in recent years, it generally followed an upward trend over the period from 2007 to 2016.
14. Luxembourg
Rate of Kidnapping: 5.968
Luxembourg reported a kidnapping rate of 6 cases per 100,000 population in 2018. Despite notable fluctuations in the kidnapping rate in recent years, Luxembourg’s trend generally indicated a decline over the period from 2009 to 2018.
13. Saint Kitts and Nevis
Rate of Kidnapping: 6.068
Ranking 13th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped is Saint Kitts and Nevis. The number of kidnappings in Saint Kitts and Nevis had risen from 2 in 2009 to 3 in 2011, demonstrating an average annual growth rate of 25%. Over the period from 2009 to 2011, Saint Kitts and Nevis observed an increase in its kidnapping rate from 4.1 cases per 100,000 population to 6.1 cases per 100,000 population, with an average annual growth rate of 23.93%.
12. Maldives
Rate of Kidnapping: 6.849
In the Maldives, the kidnapping rate stood at 6.8 cases per 100,000 population. Despite notable fluctuations in recent years, the trend in the Maldives indicated a general increase over the period spanning from 2008 to 2017, ultimately reaching a rate of 6.8 cases per 100,000 population by 2017.
11. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Rate of Kidnapping: 8.222
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines garnered the 11th spot in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped. From 2004 to 2016, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines had an average kidnapping rate of 3.6 cases per 100,000 people. The lowest recorded rate was 0.9 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2009. The most recent data point from 2016 reflects a rate of 8.2 kidnappings per 100,000 people.
10. United Kingdom
Rate of Kidnapping: 8.835
Between 2022 and 2023, the police in England and Wales recorded a total of 7,420 kidnapping offenses, marking an uptick from the preceding year. Notably, the number of kidnapping offenses had declined significantly to a low of 1,388 cases from 2012 to 2013, but there has been a consistent upward trend in almost every reporting year since. From 2003 to 2017, the data reveals that the United Kingdom had an average kidnapping rate of 4.7 cases per 100,000 people. The lowest recorded rate was 3.1 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2012, while the highest reached 7.3 kidnappings per 100,000 individuals in 2017. The most recent data point from 2017 indicates a rate of 8.84 kidnappings per 100,000 people. The UK is among the top 10 kidnapping countries in the world.
9. Eswatini
Rate of Kidnapping: 9.354
In the year 2004, Eswatini recorded a kidnapping rate of 9.4 cases per 100,000 population. However, in the year 2021, a substantial transformation in the overall crime landscape becomes evident. Eswatini’s comprehensive crime rate and statistical profile escalated to 12.66, signifying a noteworthy surge of 12.17% when compared to the data reported in 2017. This trajectory highlights a notable shift in the country’s crime dynamics over this period.
8. Pakistan
Rate of Kidnapping: 9.452
Pakistan ranks 8th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped. From 2015 to 2017, Pakistan maintained an average kidnapping rate of 8.9 cases per 100,000 people, with the lowest recorded rate being 8.8 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2017 and the highest reaching 9.1 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2015. In 2017, the data reported a rate of 8.8 kidnappings per 100,000 people. In 2018, Pakistan reported a kidnapping rate of 9.5 cases per 100,000 population. Over the years, Pakistan’s kidnapping rate exhibited a gradual decline, decreasing from 11 cases per 100,000 population in 2012 to the 2018 figure of 9.5 cases per 100,000 population.
7. New Zealand
Rate of Kidnapping: 9.508
New Zealand ranks 7th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped. Child trafficking in New Zealand is a more significant issue than one might initially perceive. As reported by New Zealand’s Ministry of Justice, a substantial number of children are subject to abduction from the country and transported overseas each year, with 61 cases documented in 2006. During the same year, there were also 31 recorded incidents involving children who were abducted from foreign countries and brought into New Zealand.
6. South Africa
Rate of Kidnapping: 9.569
Kidnapping rates in South Africa have surged, with figures now four times higher than they were a decade ago. In the final three months of 2022, the most recent period for which official crime statistics are available, an alarming daily average of 45 kidnappings were reported to the police. From the 2022 to 2023 fiscal year, the total count of kidnappings in South Africa soared to a staggering 15,343 cases.
5. Belgium
Rate of Kidnapping: 10.245
Ranking 5th in our list of the most common places to get kidnapped is Belgium. Between 2007 and 2011, Belgium witnessed an increase in kidnapping incidents, rising from 8.9 to 10.4 kidnappings per 100,000 people. Subsequently, the kidnapping rate in the country experienced fluctuations. In the year 2017, Belgium reported a rate of 10.3 kidnappings per 100,000 people. Over this period, the average kidnapping rate for Belgium was 9.9 cases per 100,000 people, with a low point of 8.6 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2006 and a peak of 10.8 kidnappings per 100,000 people in 2011. The most recent available data from 2017 indicates a rate of 10.245 kidnappings per 100,000 people.
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