Woman drives over smash and grabber

902 A crime scene expert takes pictures of the scene on 7th street in Linden where 3 men tried to hijack a woman after a chase with the police that started in Robindale. 190208. Picture: Bongiwe Mchunu

902 A crime scene expert takes pictures of the scene on 7th street in Linden where 3 men tried to hijack a woman after a chase with the police that started in Robindale. 190208. Picture: Bongiwe Mchunu

Published Aug 22, 2013

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Johannesburg - An alleged smash and grabber is in a coma, fighting for his life, after his would-be victim ran him over.

The woman then drove home, leaving the bleeding, injured man at the scene.

And despite being in a coma, the man has been charged with attempted robbery and is currently under police guard at Tembisa Hospital.

The incident happened around 7.30pm on Tuesday at the intersection of Pretoria and Snake roads in Northmead, Benoni.

Benoni police spokesman Constable Timothy Masilela said the woman, who was in a Tata car, had stopped at the intersection.

She was driving home from work and was alone. Masilela said the information they received was that the man approached the woman as she waited for the traffic light to turn green. He smashed the passenger-side window.

“He then grabbed the handbag on the seat. However, the woman grabbed it back and they wrestled over it. While still holding the bag, the woman accelerated, and as she did, the man let go of the bag and fell.

“The victim said she just drove on and never checked what had happened to the man.

“She reported the incident at Benoni police station, and when we got there, the man was in a coma and bleeding from his head and legs,” Masilela said.

ER24 spokeswoman Vanessa Jackson said she was not sure what happened, but it seemed that the man had been pulled under the car as the woman sped off.

“When we arrived at the scene, the man was unresponsive and we placed him on life support due to the severity of his injuries,” she said.

Jackson said the woman drove home to tell her husband about what had happened, and both of them then drove to Benoni police station. She said a passer-by called the paramedics.

While not much is known about the man, Jackson said he had an ID book on him which showed he was 25 years old.

This incident happened a day after a KwaZulu-Natal man shot and killed a would-be hijacker in Pinetown. Police said the man was driving with his wife when four men attempted to hijack them.

The men shot the driver and his wife, wounding them. The man, in his fifties, retaliated and opened fire, killing one of them. The other three men fled in a getaway vehicle, leaving their dead accomplice at the scene.

In a separate incident on that same day, a motorist shot and wounded one of the four men who allegedly tried to hijack him in Rosettenville, Joburg. Police said the man was at the on-ramp of the N17 when his vehicle was blocked by another car. As he tried to make a U-turn, the thugs shot at him.

The man got out and returned fire, shooting one of the men in the foot.

The wounded man and another suspect were arrested.

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The Star

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