Toulouse. Eleven people tried for kidnapping: they demanded 1,500 euros and a PlayStation 5 from the family of a young man who owed a drug trafficking network.

The ransom was almost paltry. And yet, it was for a few thousand euros and a game console that a teenager was kidnapped, held captive, and abused for two days in March 2023 in the Toulouse region (Haute-Garonne). Eleven people are being tried this Wednesday and Thursday for this kidnapping and sequestration case, the prosecutor's office announced. A twelfth person, a minor, will be tried at a later date.

That day, the victim was leaving a metro station in the city center. He didn't realize he was being followed by a car that ended up blocking his path. The occupants eventually grabbed the young man and threw him into the vehicle. The victim was taken to a home in the suburbs of Toulouse, where she was held captive and assaulted.

Questioned by investigators, who are now working on an investigation into kidnapping, unlawful confinement, and assault, the victim explained that she was not targeted by chance. The young man had apparently incurred a debt with a drug trafficking network. […]

Le Parisien (Full article)