Youngsters tell of traumatic robbery at Steiltes Kruis
"They took off my shoes and socks and put the socks in our mouths. I had no doubt in my mind that these men had no care if we died there," said Brittany Jennifer, one of the victims of the robbery at the Steiltes lookout point.
What was meant to be a relaxing Sunday afternoon ended in horror when a group of young people were bound, gagged and robbed at gunpoint at a the cross lookout point in Steiltes.
Twin brothers, Matthew and Jordan Prinsloo (21), their cousin, Luke Lombaard (19), and a friend, Brittany Jennifer (24), had just returned from Kaapsehoop and decided to go the Steiltes Kruis before going their separate ways.
Arriving there, they parked their car and just sat in it and chatted for a while. They all climbed out; Matthew and Jennifer walked off to have a private conversation while Jordan and Lombaard admired the view sitting a short distance away from the vehicle.
Matthew and Jennifer were out of Jordan and Lombaard’s view at this stage.
Two men arrived at the lookout point, parked their car, and went on a walk in Matthew and Jennifer’s direction.
The twins told Lowvelder that the men looked relaxed, and wore casual clothing like they were also there to merely admire the view.
“The one guy looked at me and asked if he could borrow my lighter. He seemed very friendly. I tossed it to him. He threw it back and as soon as I looked up (from catching it), he had a gun pointed at my face,” said Matthew.
From there Matthew and Jennifer were taken up a nearby path and tied to palisades.
At this stage, Jordan and Lombaard began to wonder what was taking the other two so long. While Jordan got back into the car, Lombaard went to investigate.
On his arrival, one of the suspects also pulled a gun on him.
“At first, when he pulled the gun on me, I was confused, I’m not going to lie. For a good two seconds, I looked at the gun and was like ‘Wait, what?’ then I realised what was happening,” said Lombaard.
Having found his bearings, he handed the suspect his cellphone. He was also tied up, lying next to Jennifer, all the while thinking of the worst that might happen to her.
Jennifer said she started crying and praying out loud. “I had no doubt in my mind that these men had no care if we died there. That was all that kept going through my mind: they are going to shoot me because I cannot stop crying.
“They told us to ‘sleep on our faces’ and tied my ankles to Matthew’s and my arms to his with heavy-duty cable ties. They took off my shoes and socks and put the socks in our mouths.”
When the boys tried to comfort her, she said the suspects reacted with phrases like “you think you’re funny” or “I will blow your head out”.
Still in the car where Lombaard had left him, Jordan’s concern grew when his cousin had not also returned.
One of the suspects returned and parked his car in front of Jordan. He tried to make conversation with him, at one stage he even offered him a beer.
Jordan checked his phone and when he turned back, the man had a gun pointed at him and instructed him to get out of his car and into the suspect’s.
The man drove a short distance to where Jordan’s companions were tied up, where the same fate awaited him.
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At one stage the victims heard one of the suspects on the phone saying that there were four people. At this moment they realised they needed to get out of there.
Once they were sure the men had left, Jordan managed to get free of his restraints and helped the rest do the same. From there they went around the back of the palisades and made their way down to the street through the trees.
Here they managed to find help and were able to contact their parents. Their car was later found on the scene again with an empty fuel tank and a dent that had not been there before. The twins and their father had it towed away. According to the brothers, the police said they could not open a case because the vehicle had been moved from the scene.
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Capt Zandile Gqawa, the spokesperson for the Nelspruit SAPS, said they are investigating the matter of the case not being opened and advised the public in the meantime to not visit the area as it is clearly being targeted by criminals.
The group wishes to warn friends and the public to rather not visit the viewpoint; they do not wish what they went through on anyone.
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