Durban - A Chatsworth mother is receiving trauma counselling after being held captive for 16 hours by hijackers.
Ugeshnie Govender, 34, was hijacked on Friday at 10am while en-route to Crossmoor Secondary School to pick up her children.
Two men jumped out their vehicle at a stop street near the school, walked to her Mercedes Kompressor and pointed firearms at her.
They demanded she jump into the passenger seat while they got in.
According to her brother Deena Naicker, Ugeshnie was instructed to lower her head so other drivers would not see her.
The men also did not want her taking note of where they were heading.
He said at some point she was transferred to a second vehicle but she could not recollect the make of the car nor the area.
“They asked if her Mercedes was fitted with a vehicle tracking device and she said it was. They subsequently deactivated the battery.”
While in the second car, Ugeshnie’s hands and feet were bound and a covering placed over her head.
Naicker said the hijackers drove for some time before stopping at either a house, warehouse or garage.
“She heard something that sounded like a roller gate being opened, so she assumed it was one of the three.”
Ugeshnie was driven inside and the ‘roller-gate’ was closed.
“She sat in the car and heard their voices but she did not know what they were saying.”
The men finally decided it was time to hit the road again and they left the venue.
Naicker said during the journey his sister, who tried to keep calm, was untied and pushed out the moving vehicle.
“She did not know how fast the car was going but they just threw her out. She sustained scraped legs, hands and other injuries.
“Ugeshnie had no idea where she was. Her clothes were muddy and she was disoriented but she managed to find her way to a service station in Rossburgh where she requested help. This was after 2am on Saturday.”
Naicker, Ugeshnie’s businessman husband Lenny, and police headed for the scene.
“She was in a bad condition. Her clothing was messed with mud and she was emotionally traumatised. My sister was taken to a local hospital where she received treatment.”
Naicker said they did not pester Ugeshnie on getting details of her ordeal as she was still in shock.
Asked about the vehicle, he said it was not recovered.
He said when the tracking device was de-activated, the company called Lenny to alert him something was amiss at around 10.40am on Friday.
That’s when the family rallied together in a frantic search to locate her.
Several messages were posted on the social media network Facebook informing users of her disappearance.
Concerned users, many strangers, posted messages and prayers for her safe return.
Lenny Govender was unavailable to speak to POST on Monday and Tuesday.
Meanwhile, a member of the Bayview Policing Forum, Shaun Hammond, and businessman, Dan Naidoo, visited the Govender home.
Hammond said the CPF planned on getting the victims of serious crimes to form an organisation to highlight to government that the safety and security of taxpaying citizens needed to be a priority.
“The fact that she (Ugeshnie) was held for 16 hours shows the level of what hijackings has come to.”
Naidoo visited after his son, John Dwain, 31, was recently shot in the neck at his home in Glenmore.
He said: “We are being attacked and slaughtered daily. We don’t even believe the crime statistics anymore. I am not interested in the politics of the country but demand our safety. We need to engage with government to tell them we need protection.”
The recently released crime statistics revealed an increase in hijackings in Chatsworth from 110 last year to 120 in 2012.
A case of car jacking is being investigated. - POST