Businesman kidnapped 'outside his front door' in Mozambique

A high-profile businessman in Mozambique has been abducted in the second such case in a fortnight.

Kidnappers seized Manish Cantilal on Tuesday as he was walking towards the front door of his house in the capital, Maputo.

Maputo police spokesman Leonel Muchina said the incident was captured on CCTV.

Joint investigations are under way with the National Criminal Services, he added, to "return the abductee to his family, and neutralise the abductors and bring them to justice for this crime".

In 2014 Mr Cantilal was himself accused of being part of a feared gang of kidnappers that struck fear into wealthy business owners, many of whom fled to South Africa and Portugal for their safety.

He always denied the charges, which were later dropped.

In another twist, a judge who presided over the case was later shot dead in the capital.

The rate of kidnappings in the eastern African country is on the rise again. Wealthy business owners, often of Asian origin, are frequent targets.

Last week, businessman Issufo Satar was kidnapped from the city of Chimoio in central Mozambique.