Nelspruit - A 35-year-old man linked to the hijacking and kidnapping of a former mayor of Emalahleni local municipality will appear in court soon, Mpumalanga police said.
The expected appearance followed after the former mayor and a family member were reportedly hijacked on Wednesday evening at Ogies, near Witbank, and kept hostage until the early hours of the morning, Colonel Mtsholi Bhembe said.
"It is reported that during the hostage ordeal they were assaulted and robbed of their personal belongings as well as cash. They were later dropped around the Balmoral area and the suspects drove away in the victim's motor vehicle.
"Swift action by the police led to the recovery of the victim’s vehicle at a guesthouse at Ekangala in the Gauteng province as well as the subsequent arrest of the suspect in whose possession the victims' belongings were found."
The suspect was expected to appear in court in Gauteng on the possession of stolen property charges and later at Ogies in Mpumalanga for the hijacking and kidnapping charges.
Mpumalanga police management believed the suspect was linked to another recent case at Vosman, where a police officer was hijacked and robbed of his service pistol as well as a private firearm, Bhembe said.