The trap was set and ready. The unsuspecting truck driver did not stand a chance as a sleek black BMW pulled up in front of him. In the blink of an eye three men got out of the BMW and a sheen of cold sweat broke out on the truck driver’s forehead as one of the men revealed a firearm.
Hijackers focussed their attention on heavy vehicles the past week. On Friday, September 5 at around 18:00, a truck was reported hijacked near the N12 off ramp.
“The driver was on his way back from eMalahleni and stopped at a petrol station to fill up,” said the owner of the truck, Mr Jace Archary. It seems that hijackers followed the driver from the filling station where they then brought the truck to a halt on the N12 off-ramp by blocking the vehicle with a BMW.
Archary told how the suspects forced their way into the truck and threatened the driver with a firearm.
“They took his bankcard and even withdrew money from his account,” Archary recalls.
The suspects tied up the driver with shoelaces and blindfolded him as they drove on.
“They then dumped him somewhere near Middelburg,” Archary continued.
The driver was allegedly found in a veldt and later taken to Witbank Police Station to report the incident.
The truck was recovered the next day in Swaziland.
Earlier on Friday, another alleged hijacking was reported when police discovered a truck next to the old Ogies road.
The driver of the truck was found dead inside the vehicle with a gunshot wound to his left shoulder.
The deceased was later identified by a colleague as Philani Myeni (30).
Police are investigating a case of murder. No arrests have yet been made.
