KZN hijacker killed by victim

A would-be hijacker was shot dead on Monday by the driver of the vehicle he was attempting to hijack in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal police said.

Captain Thulani Zwane confirmed the shooting.

He said four men attempted to hijack the car in Alberts Road.

The driver, a man believed to be in his 50s who was wounded in his stomach, returned fire, fatally wounding one of the four men. He was driving with his wife when they were attacked.   Zwane said the three other hijackers fled in a getaway vehicle.

Netcare 911 spokesman Chris Botha said the husband and wife had both been shot. The husband was taken to hospital in a critical condition while the wife was in a serious condition.

A worker from a nearby workshop who spoke on condition of anonymity said: “I first heard three shots. Then there was a slight pause and then suddenly there were five shots in rapid succession.”  He said he ran out and saw the dead hijacker lying at the entrance to the complex of mini-factories and auto repair businesses.

“I came past the car to see what had happened and the woman said: ’Please help us, we’ve been shot’. She was hit in the leg.

She was amazingly calm, but he was in pain, real pain,” he said.

He and fellow workers secured the scene around the Toyota Camry, and called paramedics and the police.

Police and forensics experts could be seen working at the scene late on Monday afternoon.