Hijackers in South Africa are increasingly resorting to kidnapping their victims, with three primary goals for doing so.
The first is that they attempt to force the car owner to reveal the location of tracking devices, and the second is to delay the reporting of the crime to give them more time to get away with it.
Fidelity Services Group noted that there have been several instances where the criminals also kidnap a driver with the aim of emptying their bank accounts.
Once inside the vehicle, the hijackers drive around for hours with a victim to different ATMs where they are intimidated into drawing as much money as they possibly can, according to Fidelity CEO Wahl Bartmann.
Sometimes, they even wait until the early hours of the following morning for the victim’s withdrawal limit to reset and then take them to the ATMs for another round of withdrawals before they are released.
Most hijackings target victims at, or close to, their residences and places of work, but these are not the only locations where they are active as places like drive-thrus and petrol stations have recently also been flagged as hotspots for vehicle crime.
“If (drivers) suspect they are being followed, they should drive to the closest police station immediately or at least to a busy centre where other people are around,” said Bartmann.
“Do not offer any resistance during a hijacking. Remember that perpetrators are always armed and would not hesitate to fire when confronted.”
More often than not, additional perpetrators may stand out of view and fire should you fight back, he said.
Fidelity’s historical data shows that hijackings are expected to surge in February and March, and the group therefore urges motorists to be more aware of their surroundings than ever.
The worst province for vehicle crimes in South Africa
The latest statistics from Tracker show that hijackings are still the most prevalent type of vehicle crime in South Africa, accounting for 55% of national incidents during July and December 2023 versus theft at 45%.
Gauteng experienced the highest volumes at a total of 61% of all cases of vehicle crime, followed by KwaZulu-Natal at 14% and the Western Cape at 9%.
“While 55% of all nationwide hijackings occur in Gauteng due to vehicle volumes, the overall national hijacking propensity appears to be driven by all other provinces,” said Tracker.
“Gauteng is the province with one of the lowest proportions of hijacking, at 48% in comparison to theft at 52%.”
Nationwide, a higher proportion of vehicles are reported hijacked on Fridays, and, regardless of the day, between the hours of 16h00 and 20h00.
Meanwhile, theft is mainly reported on Saturdays, and between the hours of 11h00 and 15h00.
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