Criminal gangs are believed to make $500 million a year from kidnap and ransom payments.

The vessel was subsequently released, possibly as a result of a ransom payment, on 13 January 2009.

One report estimated its revenues from ransom payments in 2000 alone between $10 and $25 million.

Christ's death provided the ransom payment to free humans from death.

The ransom payment received by Pizarro is recognized as the largest ever paid to a single individual, probably over $2 billion in today's economic markets.

Salazar's ransom payment has to prompt a response of some kind.

There were no developments and little evidence of any sort, so police turned their attention to tracking the ransom payments.

Failing this, the partnerships in which we are investing so much may as well be called ransom payments.

Criminal gangs are estimated to make up to $500 million a year in ransom payments from kidnapping.

Nor was there any immediate indication of a ransom payment.