Man killed while protecting girlfriend from alleged hijackers

Newlands East police are investigating cases of murder and carjacking, after a man was shot dead and his vehicle taken at a petrol station in KwaZulu-Natal on Tuesday night, reports Rising Sun Overport.

Blue Security’s community and media liaison officer Andreas Mathios said the private taxi driver was shot and killed while he tried to protect his girlfriend from hijackers.

ALSO READ: Student’s boyfriend rescued shortly after hijacking, kidnapping

“The man was allegedly busy re-fuelling his vehicle at the petrol station with his girlfriend, an off-duty policewoman, in the car with him, just before midnight. Hijackers accosted the couple and pulled the woman out of the vehicle and produced a firearm,” he stated.

The driver then jumped out of the vehicle and had an altercation with the suspect in an attempt to protect his girlfriend.

“Two shots were fired, hitting the driver in his upper body. Paramedics later declared him dead at the scene,” Mathios said.

He added that the suspect then jumped into the victim’s vehicle and fled the scene.

The vehicle was allegedly later found abandoned about one kilometre away from the scene of the crime.

Provincial police spokesperson Col Thembeka Mbhele said Newlands East police received a complaint of murder and carjacking and upon arrival at the garage, they found a body of a 26-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the left of his abdomen.

“At gunpoint, the suspects took the deceased’s white Toyota Etios vehicle, shot him and fled the scene,” she added. No arrests have been made at this stage.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.