Durban - Hijack victim Neren Bhagwandass is lucky to be alive after he was stripped down to his underwear, taken on a terror ride, stabbed and left for dead in a sugar cane field in Esenembe on the North Coast.
A week after his ordeal, Bhagwandass, pictured, is recovering at St Augustine’s Hospital.
He now believes it was his faith in God that kept him alive during the 12 hour saga.
The 46 year old had left his Gandhi’s Hill home in oThongathi (Tongaat) on Friday night around 9.30pm to go to a garage to buy bread and cigarettes. He was travelling in an Opel Corsa.
When he failed to return home his wife Nirasha and children Alona, 21, and Akshay, 17, became concerned and alerted family who searched for him, but to no avail. In the meantime Bhagwandass had been hijacked at a stop street on Main Road in oThongathi minutes after leaving the garage.
Describing his attackers as merciless and callous, Bhagwandass said he clearly remembered the coldness of the pistol against his head and a deep voice telling him to move to the passenger’s seat.
As he began to move, another accomplice jumped into the car and on to the same seat Bhagwandass had occupied.
“I was squashed between the two men,” he said. “I was afraid, so I told them to take the car, my money and my cellphone and leave me alone, but they refused. They started assaulting me with the butts of their guns and threatened to slit my throat.”
Bhagwandass said the men drove for 20 minutes before stopping to pick up a third accomplice.
“I was instructed to remove all my clothes except for my boxers (underwear). Using my belt, they tied my hands and shoved me to the back of the vehicle.
“I was made to sit on the floor in a kneeling position with my head down. The third suspect sat on top of me. He beat me on my head throughout our journey.”
Bhagwandass said he knew he had to escape and when the men stopped the vehicle for the second time he planned to make a getaway.
“We all got out of the vehicle and I managed to break free from the belt. The men saw this and stabbed me in the chest. I fought back and was stabbed twice on my back. I was bleeding profusely and could not move. The men sped off in my vehicle.”
Certain he was going to die, Bhagwandass started to pray.
“I could not move. I was hurt so badly. I just prayed for help. The next day at around midday I was found by a man who lived nearby. He called for assistance and a number of people came to assist me.”
He said a towing vehicle transported him to hospital.
“By this time my family, who had been searching the area and different hospitals and morgues, were alerted. I am so thankful to be alive. This was a terrible experience, I would never wish it on anyone.”
Head of Reaction Unit SA, Prem Balram said that during the night his officers had searched everywhere, includ-ing hospitals, but to no avail.
“During the early hours of the morning a passerby found Bhagwandass lying on a dirt road with stab wounds to his back and chest. Bhagwandass managed to give the person his family’s telephone number,” said Balram.
He said the victim was in a critical condition and was rushed to hospital. He was now reported in a stable condition.
Police spokesman Major Thulani Zwane said a case of hijacking was being investigated. No arrests had been made.
Chairman of the Tongaat Policing Forum, Moses Mabaso, said as the festive season was approaching, hijackings and robberies were increasing in the area. The forum would be educating people on safety. He advised motorists to be vigilant, lock all doors and keep windows closed.
The Post