Magistrate Thandi Twele recently sentenced a 31-year-old man to 20 years direct imprisonment at the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court.
Gift Ndlovu was found guilty of car hijacking and sentenced.
According to the spokesperson for Johannesburg Central Police, Captain Xoli Mbele, Ndlovu and three of his accomplices who are still on the run from police, hijacked a silver-grey Mercedes Benz Compressor in Rossettenville.
Detailing how the hijacking occurred, Mbele said a 46-year-old victim, who was a passenger, was waiting in the vehicle while the driver was in the house they had visited.
“The victim was ambushed and one of the suspects pointed a firearm at him while his accomplices dragged the victim from the front passenger seat to the back seat of the vehicle. They drove off with him and stopped near City Deep, trying to check if the vehicle had a tracking device. The suspects then took a laptop and two cellphones found in the car.”
Those in the house were alerted by a passerby about the hijacking. Police were called and they responded quickly.
The owner of the vehicle activated the tracking device on his vehicle, and the police arrived at the scene before it was removed. They found Ndlovu holding the victim in the backseat of the hijacked car and he was apprehended immediately.
The other three suspects managed to run away. According to Mbele, they used a white Ford Ranger to get away from the scene. The police spokesperson said they later abandoned the Ford Ranger and ran away on foot. Police discovered that the Ford Ranger had been hijacked in Turfontein on the same day.
The stolen laptop was recovered from the Ford Ranger.
Mbele said the good conviction is the result of a diligent work by the investigating officer, Constable Herbert Seroka.
“This should send a strong message to the community that crime does not pay and that the weed of crime bears bitter fruits. We shall continue to do our best through our investigations to ensure that those who commit acts of crime are put away for a long time,” Mbele concluded.
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