Hitchhikers and Truckdrivers Urged to Be Cautious As Kidnappings and Robberies Rise in KwaZulu-Natal

• KwaZulu-Natal police are warning residents of a group of men who are targeting hitchhikers and truck drivers
• According to police in the area the assailants kidnap their victims and take them to an isolated location
• The gang is hard to track since they use different vehicles to avoid being detected by police and are yet to be arrested

KWAZULU-NATAL - A group of heavily armed men is allegedly targeting hitchhikers and truck drivers in the Harry Gwala District of KwaZulu-Natal. Police in the area have warned residents to be cautious in areas such as Harding and Kokstad.

Police Spokesperson Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo said the assailants kidnap their victims and take them to an isolated area. The armed men then rob the victims of their belongings at gunpoint, News24 reported.

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The criminals are yet to be arrested. According to police, the gang is hard to track since they use different vehicles to avoid being detected.

IOL reported that police call for the public for them to assist with tracking down the offenders. Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts is urged to contact Crime Stop on 0860 010 111.

South Africans react to the incident:

@Philani31964425 said:

“It’s the taxi drivers.”

Mandy Heiberg commented:

“Who the h*ll still hitchhikes.”

@SwartEtienne wrote:

“Tourism beware.”

Gorogang Kgotleng Mosoane added:

“KZN is cursed I can tell you, that’s why lot of bad things always happens there, those people don’t have peace.”

Hitchhiker fatally shoots two men who allegedly attempted to rob him at knifepoint after offering him a lift

In a related matter, Briefly News also reported two suspected robbers were shot and killed while attempting to rob a hitchhiker in Nelspruit on Thursday 5 May.

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The robbers were in a silver VW Polo and offered the man a lift to the Nelspruit CBD but allegedly went off-route and attempted to rob the man at knifepoint.

The man pulled out his firearm and shot both men, one died while in the car and the other while he was being driven to a hospital.

Source: Briefly News