[imagesource: Supplied by Moti family]

On October 20, seven gunmen attacked a vehicle carrying the Moti brothers (Zidan, 7, Zayyad, 11, Alaan, 13, and Zia, 15) en route to school in Polokwane.

The gunmen used their two vehicles to stop the car carrying the brothers, fired R5 rifles and handguns, forced the children into a Mercedes-Benz, and sped off.

According to the driver of the car carrying the children to school, the gunmen were well prepared, wearing white overalls, masks, balaclavas, and gloves.

The Moti family are among Polokwane’s wealthiest, having found success in both commercial property developments and the luxury car trade.

Clearly, this was a sophisticated operation, and there have been no public demands of a ransom. Danie Strydom, a former hostage negotiator with the South African Police Service (SAPS), has previously said this is a carefully chosen strategy aimed at making the parents desperate.

Sunday marked Zidan’s birthday, and on social media, the hashtags #MotiBrothers and #PrayForTheMotiBrothers began to trend:

Today,sunday 7th November is Zidan Motis crown birthday. Zidan and his brothers need to be home with their parents. Please bring the #MotiBrothers home #PrayForTheMotiBrothers
🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽💙💙💙💙#BringThemHome 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽💙💙💙💙💔
Share this pic 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽with your contacts everywhere. pic.twitter.com/hYj7oQCXLM

— ShaynaO 🇿🇦 (@roekshana0) November 7, 2021

Please contact the police should you have more information #MotiBrothers pic.twitter.com/YtJHRBkFN0

— Tumi Sole (@tumisole) November 7, 2021

Dear SA. Today as we wake the Moti parents wake to agony as their little boy Zidan should be at home celebrating his 7th Birthday.

But along with his brothers Zayyad, Alaan & Zia all kidnapped almost 3wks ago they have not returned home! #MotiBrothers

We must keep praying! 🙏🏽🕯 pic.twitter.com/3Gb1CjMLC7

— CATHERINE Constantinides (@ChangeAgentSA) November 7, 2021

As it stands, authorities won’t publicly comment on the investigation, adding that there hasn’t been a demand for a ransom from the kidnappers so far.

However, investigator Mike Bolhuis believes there may be plenty going on behind the scenes that the public aren’t privy to.

He spoke with The Polokwane Review about why he believes the Moti brothers are alive and will be returned unharmed.

“I believe the children were taken solely for the purpose of money and it is our opinion that the children are safe…High-profile kidnappers use the tactic of keeping the children for a while, so as to ensure the parents will do anything to have their loved ones returned, and thus they can ensure they get the highest possible amount out of the family. The kidnappers did not leave any forensic evidence behind. They are in complete control.”

Because the investigation is a sensitive one, Bolhuis says it’s unlikely that the public would be kept informed.

Additionally, law enforcement may also be kept out of the loop:

“If contact is made, they will do it in a manner that is not reported to the authorities. Unfortunately, it often happens that kidnappers ‘wheel and deal’, and sometimes they might even have information on the family that is of importance to police, which will be used against a family to negotiate.

As I said, the kidnappers are in control. They give the rules of engagement and when the money is handed over, the children will be returned and no information will be released as per instruction from the kidnappers.”

In that sense, perhaps no news is good news.

Former leading police hostage negotiator Manie van der Merwe agrees, telling The Sowetan that the silence may be a sign there could be a resolution:

“Silence is crucial. When there is a media blackout on such a high-profile incident, such as this one, it usually means some kind of resolution to the event is close,” said van der Merwe, who retired last month…

“It usually means a resolution of some sort is near, and things are coming to an end one way or another, with either the hostages about to be released or police closing in on the kidnappers.”

Van der Merwe also said that in a case like this, there often be as many as 200 law enforcement officials involved, which would include detectives, telecommunication specialists, cybercrimes investigators, and crime intelligence officers.

Across the country, South Africans have held prayer vigils asking for the safe return of the four brothers.

[source:polokwanereview&sowetan]