An unusual tactic to conduct an attempted hijacking was apparently used on the R36 to Ohrigstad on Friday evening. At about 22:00, an Audi Q5 and a Volkswagen Touareg were in a head-on collision about 34km out of Lydenburg when they both tried to swerve out of the way of a prone figure lying in the middle of the road.
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This turned out to be a ‘hijacking doll’, also known as a decoy body, which was deliberately placed there. The Audi driver tried to manoeuvre his vehicle to avoid driving over the decoy, and collided with the Volkswagen. The decoy was dressed in a blue overall jacket and dark grey cargo pants. Orange net bags used to pack citrus were rolled up to represent boots.
The perpetrators who placed the doll on the road are not yet known to the Lydenburg SAPS. “By law, there is no legal obligation to stop and assist a road crash victim, unless you were the driver causing the injury. It is, however, the kindness of the motoring public that motivates a driver to stop and assist. “It is this kindness that is exploited by hijackers to take ‘easy’ possession of a motorist most likely to be unarmed and with his or her vehicle still running,” said Moeti Mmusi, the provincial community safety, security and liaison’s spokesperson.
