One of at least six carjackers was caught thanks to dedicated ICE (In Case of Emergency) members – a proud community organisation that assists the local police – following a carjacking on Saturday night 16 November.
According to Luqmaan Rahim, chairman of ICE, “We believe that from the start a total of five men – who were driving around in an unmarked taxi without registration plates – were involved in the carjacking.
“We were told that they had targeted a vehicle in Discovery first, but because the owner was vigilant, he managed to get police to his house quickly and scared them off. As this failed, they made their way to the Florida area where they targeted a Honda Civic.
“As members posted ‘assistance needed’ on our network we were notified of a vehicle being stolen and at this point ICE patrollers first got involved. We were given an address of where the vehicle was taken, a description of the stolen vehicle and the direction in which the thieves were heading.
“We first spotted the stolen vehicle at the corner of 6th Avenue and Kathleen Street and we gave chase. The suspects (two of them) then turned left into 9th Avenue and sped along Goldman Street through traffic, almost wiping out numerous other motorists in the process.
“The suspect who drove eventually lost control and crashed into an oncoming vehicle. One of the suspects was apprehended, but unfortunately his accomplice escaped. The other suspects fled in the taxi.”
According to ER24’s Quinton Mulder, “The suspect who was caught, as well as the three occupants (a man, woman and a child travelling in a Toyota Yaris) sustained no serious injuries”.
Other emergency services assisting at the scene were Netcare 911, the Florida/ Maraisburg Community Policing Forums (CPFs) and lastly the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Captain Lydia Dikolomela of the Florida SAPS added that the vehicle was brand new and purchased on the day of the incident.
“The owner says that he was pulling out of his driveway when he was approached by six men. They surrounded him, forced him to hand over his car keys, jumped into the car and drove off. When he was on his way to the police station to report the matter he saw that his vehicle had been involved in an accident and that one of the suspects was lying in the road. The vehicle was damaged badly.”
She confirmed that the apprehended suspect will face a charge of carjacking.
