FBI and Belgian police foil kidnapping in Miami

Belgian police have foiled a kidnapping plot in Miami, USA, by arresting a 19-year-old man in the city of Maasmechelen. Four other suspects were arrested by the FBI in the United States as part of the same investigation.

The Federal judicial police of Limburg arrested the Belgian man during a raid in Maasmechelen on 13 January. His exact role is still under investigation, the Limburg public prosecutor's office said on Wednesday.

The operation was the result of international cooperation between the Belgian police and the FBI. At the time of the raid in Maasmechelen, the FBI also arrested four suspects in the United States who were allegedly on their way to Miami to kidnap someone for ransom.

Telegram

Two firearms were found in their car. The suspects were reportedly in contact with the Maasmechelen man via the digital platform Telegram. Prosecutors and police said they were seeing an increase in crimes committed using such digital tools. 

"Police and prosecutors want to emphasise that criminal acts in a digital context are equally subject to prosecution and severe penalties"

"This makes offenders feel untouchable," said Anna Degraen, spokeswoman for the Limburg public prosecutor's office. "They believe their involvement in crimes will fly under the radar, resulting in lighter sentences if they are prosecuted."

"Police and prosecutors want to emphasise that criminal acts in a digital context are equally subject to prosecution and severe penalties," Degraen said.

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