Local police have raised concerns over an emerging trend of hijackings in Alexandra, where armed criminals not only steal vehicles, but also keep motorists inside, forcing them to empty their bank accounts or call relatives to send cash before releasing them.

Station Commander Brigadier Vusimuzi Ngubane confirmed that the station has recorded several cases that combine hijacking and kidnapping. “It is a concern. In some of these carjacking incidents, the suspects would drive around with the drivers. Then they would ask them to open their app, get into it and transfer money. This means they are stealing, it is happening.”

Read more: Kidnapped businessman rescued in Alexandra after shootout with alleged kingpin

He said only after taking money from victim do the hijackers focus on the vehicle. “When they hijack you, they want to kidnap you, so that they can take money from you and then after that, they would look at the car. They would want to strip it or take it.”

On December 28, a motorist travelling along London Road in the early hours of the morning was hijacked after suspects requested a lift. Once dropped off, they produced a firearm, robbed him of personal belongings, and withdrew money from his bank account at an ATM. “The victim was later released at an unknown location. The officers searched for the vehicle and suspects. The vehicle was successfully recovered in Alexandra and booked in at Aeroton SAPS for further investigation,” the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department reported.

Just a week earlier, another man and his girlfriend were hijacked at gunpoint while parked on Florence Mophosho Street. The woman was left unharmed at the scene, but the 36-year-old victim was driven around the community until the suspects extorted money from his family. He told Alex News that the hijackers demanded R2 000 from his sister and attempted to request more from other relatives before eventually releasing him unharmed.

Also read: What to do if a family member is kidnapped, especially a child

Ngubane warned that e-hailing drivers are increasingly vulnerable to these crimes. In some cases, women are allegedly used to lure drivers to certain areas where they are ambushed.

He added that, in some instances, passengers themselves are not involved in the hijacking, but drivers are attacked immediately after drop-offs or when responding to new requests nearby.

Although they have arrested some suspects for hijackings, he admitted that police are struggling to contain the trend. “We are not solving it. We have a high number of these hijackings, and most of them are in sector four, just when you cross Jukskei River, around there. We do make arrests, but they do not make any impact. There are groups in Alexandra targeting e-hailing drivers. It is not one group.”

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