The predominant profile of a kidnapper in Taiwan was a single male in his 20s with a below average education, marginal employment, little history of family criminality and violence, a prior conviction for a serious crime other than kidnapping, and a first-time offender at kidnapping. Most kidnappers cited "a sense of financial desperation" as the main reason for kidnapping. Reasons given for such financial desperation were a personal debt, lack of income during parole, lack of income during criminal absconding, and drug addiction. Ringleaders of kidnapping groups often perceived kidnapping as both a last resort and the most efficient way to resolve their financial problems. This was evidenced by kidnappers' demands for large ransoms from victims and victims' families in the initial phase of the kidnapping transaction. Small groups of two to three offenders were the norm for kidnapping groups. The formation of a kidnapping group usually originated with a financially stressed ringleader who recruited fellow ex-inmates, fellow gambling partners, drug-using friends, and friends who were wanted by the police. Ringleaders or their associates knew more than half of the victims, but the nature of the social relations between offenders and their victims differed. Some kidnappers victimized close acquaintance such as relatives, business associates, and neighbors; others targeted casual acquaintances, locally prominent people, and total strangers. The kidnappers reported that they used signs of wealth and conspicuous consumption as criteria for selecting victims. Based on these findings, recommendations are offered for police in their investigations of kidnappings. 3 tables and 25 references