No hitchhiking road sign in Namibia. Image: iStock
The South African Police Service (Saps) has warned the public about the dangers of hitchhiking following three men’s arrest for common robbery after allegedly targeting two siblings who accepted a lift on the N11 road between Grobblersdal and Middelburg, in Mpumalanga on Saturday.
The suspects aged between 32 and 36 were denied bail during their first court appearance.
Keletso Masihla (32), Tebogo Mailula (34), and Dumisani Mohlala (36) remain in custody while awaiting their second appearance.
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Police Spokesperson Colonel Donald Mdhluli said the incident unfolded near Loskop Sam.
He said that one of the suspects instructed the victims to give up their belongings. Unanticipatedly this prompted one sibling to jump out from the moving vehicle.
Mdhluli said the sibling sustained minor injuries.
“The driver immediately stopped. The suspects were distracted by a vehicle that appeared when the robbery was still in progress,” Mdhluli added.
“The suspects got into their vehicle and fled the scene, taking along the victim’s bags.”
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During the robbery, the victims were momentarily aided by the other vehicle that appeared.
The siblings immediately pursued the fleeing criminals in a “high-speed chase”, simultaneously contacting Middelburg police for assistance.
Law enforcement quickly responded, spotting and stopping the suspects’ vehicle.
All three individuals were cornered and arrested at the scene, subsequently appearing in the Magistrate’s Court in Middelburg on Monday.
The suspects are expected to make their second court appearance on 25 November, with the current charges of common robbery against them.
The Acting Provincial Commissioner of Saps in Mpumalanga, Major General (Dr) Zeph Mkhwanazi, used the incident to caution the public about the dangers of hitchhiking.
“We had incidents of victims robbed of their belongings like in this instance. We also had incidents of murder and hijacking whereby drivers were targeted as they were assisting hitchhikers,” Mkhwanazi warned.
He strongly advised people to “refrain from this habit especially now as people will be moving from one area to another whereby criminals take advantage of this period”.
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