One of the men paid for himself and the other men and indicated that they were travelling together to Tsakane Extension 19.
“While the vehicle was in motion one of the passengers pulled out a firearm and pointed it at the owner, demanding that he stop the vehicle and hand over all the money.
“The driver stopped and one of the hijackers tried to change seats. The driver attempted to flee, pressing hard on his accelerator.
“He also locked the doors and sped off with the three hijackers inside the vehicle,” explains police spokesman Sgt Harry Manaka.
Read: Police concerned with amount of hijackings and car theft in Tsakane
Seeing that the owner of the vehicle was not stopping, one of the men allegedly jumped out of the moving vehicle and injured himself badly but still managed to flee on foot.
The owner then continued to drive towards Ndudula Street where there is a busy intersection.
There a second hijacker also attempted to get out of the speeding vehicle and fell hard on the ground, injuring himself.
“The remaining hijacker then allegedly jumped to the back seat and tried to strangle the driver to make him stop the vehicle, but the driver continued driving.
“The remaining hijacker who still had the firearm thought it was safer to follow his friends by jumping out of the speeding vehicle.
“Unfortunately he was not so lucky, as he hit his head hard on the rocks as a result and died on the scene,” says Manaka.
Read: Driver hijacked by hitchhikers
The driver thereafter lost control of the vehicle and hit a walled fence.
The Duduza police responded quickly to the incident, managing to arrest the second injured hijacker with help of the community.
Police also recovered the vehicle and the firearm used.
The injured suspect was arrested and taken to a nearby hospital for medical treatment, where he is under heavy police guard.
“The brave action of the driver forced the would-be hijackers to panic and jump out of a moving vehicle.
“The driver says although he was afraid, he only wanted to get to a busy road where there would be people who could help him,” he says.
The Duduza police urge local taxi drivers to exercise caution, especially in this area, and avoid taking shortcuts via the back road that goes through the mielie field.
“When carrying passengers, rather keep driving on the safe route and make sure that you are visible at all times.
“We cannot stress this enough as this was not the first incident of hijacking of a local taxi driver in the area of John Dube.
“A few weeks ago we lost a young man who was also hijacked in that area, so drivers are warned to be careful at all times,” warns Manaka.
