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Kidnap, Ransom & Extortion > Statistics

It's not possible to be exact about incidents of kidnap and ransom. Governments keep quiet about it and companies rarely release details.

Some sources have suggested that worldwide, incidents could be as high as 50,000 although it's more likely to be in the range 20,000 to 25,000. Colombia has been the kidnap centre for a number of years and accounts for up to half of all reported kidnaps. Thereafter the highest risk countries in 1999 were Mexico, Former USSR, Brazil, Philippines, Nigeria, India, Ecuador, Venezuela and South Africa.

The following are some of the statistics behind the growing trend of incidents of Kidnap & Ransom:

• Up to 10% of kidnap victims are killed, although this percentage reduces significantly where experienced negotiators such as IRG are involved. Incident Response is an integral part of the RSA Kidnap, Ransom & Extortion product.
• Over the last 8 years worldwide reported kidnappings have risen by 70% to a peak in 1999. The trend has continued into 2000.
• Around 90% of kidnappings are in the top 10 countries listed above. Approximately 75% of kidnappings are in Latin America.
• Detection is often the key to reducing kidnap incidents; Colombia has the lowest detection rate at about 0.2% of estimated incidents.
• In Europe the average payout is estimated to be $650,000. In Colombia, expatriate businessman would be released for on average about $2m. Ransom demands could be anything up to $100m.
• Roughly half of all captives are held for 1-10 days; about a quarter from 11 to 50 days and the rest from 50 to over 100 days.
• Negotiation is almost always preferable to rescue. 67% of victims are released with a ransom paid, 15% without a ransom paid. Only 7% are actually rescued and for the victims it generally represents a very high risk strategy.