Kidnapping More than Tripled in Mexico

Kidnapping has more than tripled in the last five years, a study published by a Mexican congressional committee says. The study’s findings, which appeared in numerous publications including El Universal, says that 3.72 people file a formal complaint of kidnapping now versus 0.89 people per day in 2005. The report, citing another government institution, says that only one in three people file formal complaints, making the actual number of kidnappings much higher. Over 20 percent of the kidnappers are members of the country’s security forces or government employees, and 81 percent had or have jobs and children. The vast majority of kidnappings take place in eight states, the report said, three of which lie along the US-Mexican border.