A video showing a kidnapping in Fordsburg, Johannesburg, is doing the rounds on social media platform X.
The incident, according to the CCTV video footage, happened in broad daylight yesterday (Sunday).
The driver of a Toyota vehicle is seen reversing and driving out of what looks like a retail outlet.
A white car seems to appear out of nowhere, blocking the Toyota. Three gunman emerge from the white car and force the Toyota driver and his passenger, both of whom are foreign nationals, out of the car.
Bystanders watch the crime scene unfolding.
The criminals search the car while the two victims put their hands on their heads.
The gunmen continue searching the car, as if they are looking for specific valuables or money. They open and search the car boot too. All the while, the two victims stand with their hands on their heads.
Suddenly, the gunmen drag the driver to their vehicle, shove him inside and leave the scene with him.
The Toyota passenger immediately pulls out for cellphone from his pocket.
In Gauteng, a multidisciplinary team led by the Anti-Kidnapping Task Team rescued an 18-year-old Wits University student from a kidnapping syndicate last month.
The syndicate had been targeting the LGBTQI + community through popular dating app called Grindr.
When reporting on South Africa’s crime statistics, on September 26, 2023, Police Minister Bheki Cele said police had broken the back of the kidnapping syndicate that had been linked to more than 50 kidnappings in which ransom demands were made.
Last month ,the GOOD Party said Gauteng was fast becoming the kidnapping capital of South Africa.
According to the recent crime statistics, 3 481 kidnappings were reported nationally between April and June this year, with Gauteng accounting for 1 931 of the cases.
“GOOD calls on the Gauteng Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Elias Mawela to urgently address the kidnapping crisis facing the province,” said Matthew Cook, the party’’s Gauteng political manager.
X user The VeZy wrote: “These Pakistan’s & Somalians are bringing their countries' kidnapping shenanigans to South Africa.”
Another user, Dr Morgan, wrote: “Those are Somalian’s and Pakistanis being kidnapped, they carry huge amounts of cash on them as they don’t believe in banking. They own plenty businesses in our country but they don’t bank and choose to carry cash on them”.
ntombi.nkosi@inl.co.za
Link
https://x.com/abramjee/status/1711078437811560830?s=46&t=oeMLeLVU-0aswZe6EmGwPA