Two men, one a taxi driver, were remanded in custody pending an appearance at Alexandra Magistrates’ Court on a charge of robbery and hijacking which occurred in Marlboro on the morning of 6 July.
Two of their accomplices are still at large and are wanted by police.
The four allegedly hijacked a female motorist after her vehicle, a Jeep Cherokee, stalled while she was driving to work.
One of the suspects was said to have knocked on the driver’s side window and demanded her handbag and cellphone, which she handed to him. Another suspect pointed a gun at her from the passenger side, while a third suspect smashed one of the vehicle’s windows with a rock and the fourth suspect forced her out of the vehicle before they drove away in it.
A security company’s technical response team nearby noticed the incident and pursued the vehicle while firing shots. This forced the suspects to abandon the vehicle and run on foot towards an Avanza taxi parked nearby.
The security guards stopped the taxi before one of the suspects, who was a taxi driver, could drive off in it. The police then arrested him. The other three suspects continued running into the nearby veld.
The taxi driver disclosed his accomplices’ names, leading to the arrest of the second suspect. The two suspects were denied bail pending a future court appearance.
It wasn’t disclosed if any of the victim’s items were recovered.
The hijacked vehicle and taxi were taken to the police pound.
