Police foil planned hostage-taking; suspect already previously convicted
Latvian State Police, acting on operational intelligence, detained a man who was preparing to take at least two hostages in order to extort their finances. The case has been handed to prosecutors.
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The State Police of Latvia say they used operational intelligence to prevent a crime in which a suspect was allegedly planning to seize at least two hostages. The suspect was detained while the offense was still in its preparatory stage, meaning before the plan could be carried out.
The suspect is a man born in 1979. The investigation into the criminal case has already been completed, and the file has been forwarded to the prosecutor's office, which must now decide whether to initiate criminal prosecution.
Nature of the allegations
The man is accused of preparing to take hostages with the intent of unlawfully obtaining their financial assets. In other words, the planned crime appears to have been motivated by financial gain rather than, for example, political or personal reasons.
Prior convictions
According to the available information, this is not the suspect's first appearance before a court. He has previously been convicted of a particularly serious criminal offense. In addition, as recently as last year he was also convicted of an act of indecency.
Further details about the planned crime, potential victims, or the circumstances of the detention have not yet been made public.
