A local resident has been left severely traumatised after two men robbed him of his cellphone at gunpoint while he was sitting in his vehicle at an intersection.
The incident happened on 28 October at the intersection of Republic Road and William Nicol Drive at around 7pm. The victim was approached by two males armed with guns and told to hand over his cellphone.
“We are aware of about five other incidents, but there could be much more that are unknown,” said Andre Snyman of eBlockwatch.
“The theft was reported to the police for insurance purposes and after the victim received a new phone, an SMS was sent to the number stating a case number and a link to verify his login details. This is a scam to get your personal details. We tracked the phone to Bree Street in Johannesburg,” said Snyman.
“I contacted the police and they said that it was not the correct case number. The IMEI number was also different.”
Snyman said the robbers target people sitting in traffic and then disappear along the river.
Lieutenant Colonel Andre de Klerk from Sandton Police Station said, “We do visible patrols and undercover patrols every night and station officers in the areas where crimes take place.” He added that the incidents often happen in the late afternoons as people are on their way home from work.
“People should not make themselves easy targets. Keep windows rolled up and cellphones out of sight, as people are often on their phones when stuck in traffic,” said De Klerk. He urged motorists to be vigilant when in traffic and at intersections.
He stated that most of the cellphones, when traced, end up in the city or Hillbrow and surrounds.
“We had some success recently when we arrested three suspects during the month of August, who are connected to nine other crime incidents. In this case, they used toy guns to rob people,” said De Klerk.
The latest incident happened on 2 November at the corner of William Nicol and Ballyclare drives and De Klerk urged drivers to be vigilant.
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