| Carrying out a kidnap operation is a complicated and | | | | capability, hotel or home address and place of work, |
| complex task that requires cautious planning and close | | | | phone numbers, complete description of the vehicle |
| teamwork. Kidnappers need to know who is worth | | | | being used, travel routes, identities of household |
| kidnapping and capable of paying a large ransom. | | | | helpers, drivers and employees and personal security |
| They need to know precisely where that victim will be | | | | of potential targets. The decisive factor is if the |
| at a given moment. Potential kidnap victims are studied | | | | executive is easily accessible, has poor security and |
| carefully in order to make certain the target has | | | | favorable ransom potential. |
| enough money to pay the ransom or access | | | | Pre-kidnap surveillance is boring for kidnappers. They |
| significant funds. | | | | assess routines and weak links of the executive |
| Kidnappers learn routes and routines of the potential | | | | target while trying not to draw attention upon |
| target to see if that person will be in a certain place at | | | | themselves. The surveillance assists kidnappers in |
| a predictable and constant moment. This takes careful | | | | putting together an action plan on when and how to |
| preparation and an investment of time for kidnappers. | | | | make a move. They carefully assess the executive's |
| Typically kidnappers conduct surveillance near the | | | | daily routine, noting times, places and predictability of |
| target's hotel, place of business or in-country residence | | | | schedules. If the target keeps a regimented daily |
| in order to observe him closely, noting movements | | | | routine, the probability of being selected as a target |
| such as arrivals and departures and routes traveled. | | | | increases considerably. An executive target in a large |
| Kidnappers recognize that being able to establish | | | | city is easy to place under surveillance. |
| where the target will be at a given moment will make | | | | Kidnappers try to blend with the crowd so no one |
| the kidnap operation successful. Long before the | | | | gives them a second glance. They may use still and |
| actual kidnap, the executive would have been placed | | | | video cameras to conduct the surveillance as well as |
| on pre-kidnap surveillance to determine the importance, | | | | take notes and draw maps of the target's routes, hotel |
| scale of effort and the executive's vulnerability to | | | | or residence. Executives should remain alert and be |
| kidnapping. | | | | aware of unusual traffic patterns such as seeing an |
| Executives on foreign business trips must assume that | | | | unidentified person or vehicle on a regular basis, both in |
| their patterns are being observed and that kidnappers | | | | the same area and at different locations. In the event |
| are looking for weak points and waiting to strike. The | | | | executives suspect they are being followed, they are |
| first step in planning a kidnapping operation is to come | | | | advised to head to the nearest police station or |
| up with a shopping list of three to four possible targets | | | | embassy. If such destinations are not in the vicinity, |
| that are capable of paying a huge amount of ransom. | | | | drive to a heavily populated location such as a busy |
| Targets are usually Western executives. The | | | | shopping mall, hotel or hospital. Avoid vulnerable and |
| pre-kidnap surveillance would focus on the financial | | | | sparsely populated areas. Keep safe and God Speed. |