The youngest billionaire in Africa released after kidnapping in Tanzania

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania – The youngest billionaire in Africa, kidnapped a week ago in front of a luxury hotel in Tanzania, returned home safely, the family conglomerate announced on Saturday. he was running on Twitter.

Mohammed Dewji, 43, chief executive of METL Group, was arrested while he was arriving for a morning training session in Dar es Salaam, the business capital, last week.

"I went home safely," said METL Group. Twitter account posted. The company also cited, thanking people who had worked for his release, including the police.

The post did not provide details on how he had been released nor on the payment of a ransom. Forbes estimates that his net worth is $ 1.5 billion, making him the 17th richest man in Africa and the youngest billionaire in Africa.

Dewji's family offered a reward of one billion Tanzanian shillings (US $ 440,000) for the information that led to his release.

The country's environment minister said the kidnappers had released Mr. Dewji by dropping him in a field in the early hours of Saturday.

Dar es Salaam regional police chief Lazaro Mambosasa confirmed the release and said the authorities were conducting an investigation, the Associated Press reported.

"We learned that the kidnappers had used the same vehicle that was used to seize it. at the Colosseum hotel and threw it, "said Chief Mambosasa, according to the AP." We found him in good physical shape and we suspect that the kidnappers are from South -Africans because he stated that they were communicating in one of the vernacular languages ​​of this country.

The kidnapping of Mr. Dewji, who was a member of Parliament in the past, sowed consternation in the East African nation, as he is one of the most prominent corporate leaders .

million. Dewji was abducted by two masked gunmen as he arrived at the hotel to exercise, police said Thursday. The two men fired in the air before leaving, Chief Mambosasa said.

He told the local Mwananchi press center that the police had 12 suspects in detention, including the hotel security officer, the AP said.

Mr. Dewji's former colleague in Parliament, January Makamba, tweeted Saturday morning that he had spoken to her and that he was safe.

Makamba testified that Mr. Dewji was injured on his hands and feet by his captors.

The authorities had tightened security at all border points and at all airports to ensure that the two men seen on the surveillance video were not sneaking up. Paul Makonda, Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner, stated the following:

The METL Group operates in a wide range of manufacturing, agriculture, transportation, infrastructure, and product processing activities. and telecommunications, spread across 11 African countries. [19659016] [ad_2]
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