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Spike-throwing robbers active again on N4

A vehicle struck spikes hidden under a black bag just past the Middelburg toll gate in the early hours of this morning.

A vehicle travelling from Middelburg this morning drove over spikes just past the Middelburg Toll Gate.

According to Herculaas Taljaard from the Middelburg Community Policing Forum (CPF), they were a group in four bakkies who were on their way to Fochville for work when the incident occurred.

“Just past the weighbridge, I saw a black bag in the road and swerved. The person behind me also tried to swerve, but drove over it with a back wheel, which immediately went flat,” Taljaard explained.

The group stopped and quickly realised that the bag had been secured over metal spikes to prevent it from blowing away in the wind. “They tie the black bag together with the spikes in the road so you don’t notice it until you’re too close,” he said.

Taljaard suspects that because they were travelling in a group, the spike robbers were deterred from attacking. They helped the affected driver change his tyre before continuing their journey.

He later warned motorists via WhatsApp emergency groups to remain cautious when driving in the area.

In 2023, Herculaas Taljaard came to the aid of two children on the N4 after their mother drove over rocks. He stopped a truck driver to help them, but when robbers jumped out of a bush, the startled driver drove off with the mother in the truck. The truck driver later dropped her off, and Herculaas ensured that the children and their mother were safely reunited.

Herculaas Taljaard.

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Daleen Naude

Daleen Naudé is the news editor of the Middelburg Observer, Observer Daller and the Observer Express. In 2024, she was named FCJ Journalist of the Year for the second time, and has won numerous other accolades during her illustrious 36-year career. As an industry leader in investigative reporting, Daleen has uncovered various hidden truths in her time at the Observer.
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