Robbery

Family and friends of a Somali shopkeeper kidnapped at Airport Industria remain silent, fearing for his safety as they wait to hear from the kidnappers.

“They took an undisclosed amount of cash and one of the males, a 26-year-old, with them when they fled the scene in a Toyota Corolla in an unknown direction. Nobody knows the motive but as soon as the family is ready they will reply to all the media’s questions.” The case was transferred to the provincial organised crime unit,” said Van Wyk.

A video showing a shootout in the street by armed robbers has been shared on Twitter with the claim that it showed a heist filmed in South Africa.

Family and friends of a Somali shopkeeper kidnapped at Airport Industria remain silent, fearing for his safety as they wait to hear from the kidnappers.

“They took an undisclosed amount of cash and one of the males, a 26-year-old, with them when they fled the scene in a Toyota Corolla in an unknown direction. Nobody knows the motive but as soon as the family is ready they will reply to all the media’s questions.” The case was transferred to the provincial organised crime unit,” said Van Wyk.

Kidnapping for ransom or extortion cases are often covered by the media, encouraging the view that this motive drives the substantial rise in these offences.

That in turn, will boost confidence in the police and reduce levels of fear in communities. Of these, three out of four (74.5%) were linked to armed robbery, mostly hijacking (60%) or other robberies (15%). This increase in armed robberies is undoubtedly driving the escalation in kidnappings. In the past 10 years, kidnappings rocketed by 183% from 3 832 in 2012/13 to 10 826 in 2021/22. The SAPS Crime Registrar’s office routinely analyses the motives for kidnappings in each province across the country. However fewer than two kidnappings out of the daily average are linked to ransom demands, human trafficking or extortion.