Durban - Durban was hit by two botched hijacking incidents which resulted in the death of two innocent people. On Monday, 9-year-old Sadia Sukhraj was shot and killed in Shallcross. On Thursday, Kelly Chetty, 40, was shot and killed in Avoca.
The 2016/2017 crime statistics revealed that carjacking incidents in KwaZulu-Natal increased by 21.5% from the previous year. In 2015/2016, 2493 carjacking cases were reported, while 3029 cases were reported in 2016/2017, and a further 536 later reported. This made KZN the province recording the second-highest carjacking cases, the first being Gauteng.
Explaining what happens to hijacking victims at the time of the incident, Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said they experienced a wave of emotions before, during and after a hijacking ordeal.
“Victims tend to experience feelings of anxiety, shock, disbelief and confusion. This first reaction usually leads to resistance or retaliation, which could have fatal consequences,” Zwane said.
He said police advised victims to do everything the hijackers tell them to do and allow themselves to be led by the hijacker. They should also try to remain cool and calm and report the matter to the police. He also advised hijack victims to not resist, become aggressive, threaten the hijacker, try to be a hero or try to escape.
Dr Rudolph Zinn, professor of policing and forensic investigation at Unisa, said his department completed a three-year study on imprisoned hijackers who had committed more than 400 hijackings between them. Zinn said they found that the hijackers were “motivated, focused and prepared to use force - and lethal force - if necessary”.
He said they would not tolerate resistance from the victim. According to Zinn, hijackers usually work as a trio and are armed. Two of them approach the vehicle and the third drives the car they arrived in.
He said three things caused hijackers to become aggressive. First, if the victim makes a noise or tries to hinder them. Second, they don’t like hand movements, such as taking off the seatbelt, because they think the victim has a firearm they are reaching for. Third, when victims take things from the car, such as cellphones.
“More than 80% of hijackers will not shoot a person at the crime scene because a blood-stained car is harder to sell and depreciates its value,” he said.
He said hijack victims needed to remember three things to avoid being injured. “They should try to stay calm, listen to the hijackers and follow instructions,” he said.
Daily News