Two suspects, aged 19 and 23, are set to appear in the Mooiriver Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 19 December 2016, following their arrest yesterday in Estcourt for vehicle hijacking.
On 14 December 2016 at about 12:30 a 45-year-old man, his wife and two children were in their vehicle and driving along the road at Giant’s Castle in the Mooiriver area. They came across an area where the road had been blocked with rocks and tree branches. As the father got out of the vehicle to open the road, two men armed with a firearm, knives and a hammer accosted the family.
The suspects climbed into the car and drove around with the family until late afternoon when they stopped at a garage in Lyell Street, Ladysmith. The family managed to get an opportunity to escape from the vehicle and ran, but a nine year old boy was not successful in his escape. The suspects then fled in the vehicle with the child still inside.
Police and traffic officers were alerted to the incident while SA Secure broadcasted the details of the vehicle to members of the public. A member of the public managed to keep an eye on the movements of the vehicle and police personnel from various police stations in the area, together with traffic officers and members of the public gave chase. A short while later the vehicle was intercepted along the N3 highway at the Wagendrift turnoff at Estcourt. The joint efforts of all those involved resulted in the rescue of the child, the arrest of the two suspects, and the recovery of the vehicle.
Police discovered two knives, a hammer and a firearm, which was found to be a toy gun, inside the vehicle. The child was treated and re-united with his family. The case will be investigated by Mooiriver SAPS.
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