Kuala Lumpur police have crippled a gang of Pakistanis who kidnap their own people and demand ransoms from the families of the victims in their homeland.

KL police chief Zulkifli Abdullah said four Pakistani men aged between 22 and 35, who masterminded several kidnapping cases, were detained on Feb 19.

The bust started with police receiving information on a kidnapping case and investigated an area on Jalan Ipoh about 2am on Feb 19.

NONE "As a result of the monitoring, police saw four foreigners acting suspiciously and followed them to a flat in the area," Zulkifli ( right ) told a news conference today.

Upon arrival at the house, police found three men aged between 28 and 35, who were kidnap victims, locked in, with their mouths plastered and hands tied.

Initial investigations revealed that the four men had carried out up to seven kidnappings previously.

"We foiled their plan to demand a ransom of RM620,000 from the family of their latest victim," he said.

Zulkifli said the group's modus operandi was to kidnap their countrymen who came to Malaysia to sell items, such as carpets, before demanding ransoms from their families in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, 15 individuals, including a couple, were detained for allegedly posing as policemen, customs and immigration officers to rob people and hijack cars.

The suspects, aged between 21 and 54, were detained in Cheras, Seremban and Tanjung Malim by a D9 unit from KL. Police also recovered equipment used by the suspects to disguise themselves, such as uniforms and authority badges.

- Bernama