Three men aged between 22 and 32 years appeared in Umbumbulu Magistrate’s Court today (Thursday, 9 June) facing hijacking and possession of property suspected to be stolen.
A fourth man did not appear as he is still in hospital under police guard due to injuries he sustained during a shooting with the police.
The men were remanded in custody for seven days, pending further investigation.
On Tuesday, 7 June at about 10.30am, the victim was off-loading cigarettes at Mthandeni tavern at Umbumbulu when he was approached by five men. It is alleged the suspects pushed him into his VW Caddy vehicle at gunpoint and drove away. They stopped the vehicle at Mpandweni area where they off-loaded cigarettes to another awaiting vehicle before fleeing. The driver of hijacked vehicle managed to free himself and reported the matter to the police. A case of hijacking was opened at Umbumbulu police station.
After the description and particulars of the getaway vehicle were circulated to all stations and units in the area, police from various stations as well as security guards spotted it in the area. Two men were immediately arrested and the third fled the scene. He was later arrested, having sustained a gunshot wound. Another two men managed to escape. Stolen cigarettes with a street value of R379,000 were recovered. Yesterday (Wednesday, 8 June) a fourth man was arrested in the Hillcrest area by provincial task team members.
KZN acting provincial police commissioner, Major General Bhekinkosi Langa commended a multi-disciplinary team that led to the suspects’ arrests. “The fifth suspect is still at large and our detectives will work around the clock to look for him. We are experiencing problems with the hijacking of vehicles transporting cigarettes in the province. We hope these arrested suspects will be linked to other hijackings in the province,” he said.
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