Mpumalanga cops warn against transport scam after 2 victims robbed at gunpoint

Mpumalanga police have warned the community of a transport scam in Pienaar near Mbombela, where motorists lured under the pretence of being paid to transport herbs were robbed and their cars stripped.

According to police, armed men call unsuspecting bakkie owners pretending to need someone with a vehicle to transport traditional herbs to another area.

“When the victim responds positively to the hidden trap and proceeds to the place where he is directed to, he would be accosted at gunpoint, robbed or his vehicle stripped, then left tied up in the bushes,” provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said.

Police issued the warning following two incidents in which victims were robbed.

“In the first incident on Monday, a 48-year-old man received a strange call from a person who sounded desperate requesting assistance to transport traditional herbs back home.”

The victim was promised payment for his services.

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