They told us ‘you’re going to die tonight’: Hijack victim speaks about her ordeal and rescue

“They said ‘comply and it will be over in 15 minutes’, but hours later I was sure they had other things planned for us.”

Sasha Lee Naidoo, 29, spoke to TimesLIVE about the harrowing ordeal she, her family and partner went through last Friday night after they were hijacked in Villiers in Free State and taken to an open veld. 

The four were saved.

When telling their story, Naidoo has been contacted by more than 30 people with accounts of similar incidences in the area. 

“I was angry,” Naidoo said, “but now I am left feeling disappointed as I realise how many other people this happened to.”

Hijacked, dehumanised, vehicle stripped

Naidoo, cousin Melisa Jayram, 34, her aunt Vasie Jayram, 51 and her boyfriend Tasheal Inderjit, 30, were travelling from Durban to Johannesburg last Friday when they were hijacked by men in police uniforms. 

They were driving a Toyota Hilux bakkie at the time of the incident and were travelling to family in Sandton and Pretoria for a visit.

“We were 10 minutes past the Villiers toll because I called my family waiting for us in Sandton and told them I was at least an hour away according to the Garmin. 

“It was 8.20pm. We had just left the toll when blue lights and a siren flashed behind us. We were pulled over by two men wearing police uniform. They even scanned our licence disk. We had no idea that seconds later they would have us at gunpoint.”

The men in uniform were joined by two others who tied their hands with cable ties and forced them into the back of the bakkie. The four were forced down onto the back seat and the men sat on top of them. 

“Our hands were tied so tight they were numb and hurting. We were gagged and could hardly breathe. We asked them to please put the air-con on so we had some air but were told ‘voetsek’.

“The whole time they were constantly telling us they were going to shoot us. We kept checking in on each other — ‘voetsek’. My aunt was praying and chanting [in Hindi] but they pushed her down and told her to ‘voetsek’.

“The guys in front said ‘comply this will all be over in 15 minutes’. Then the car stopped and the men in front got out and two others got in. These men were much more aggressive. We drove for what felt like hours and I just knew they had other plans for us.

“They asked us where the Tracker was [a hidden device linked to a security company which monitors the car’s location], who owned the Tracker and how much we paid for it. They took our bank cards and pin numbers and robbed us of all our bags and possessions in the car.”

The four were taken to an open veld in Vosloorus, a large township south of Boksburg, Ekurhuleni, about an hour from the Villiers toll. 

Naidoo said the bakkie drove for a distance in the veld before coming to a stop near a sand bank.

“We were told to ‘lay like a family together’. We had a man on ether side of us and one above us on the sand bank as a lookout. I know because I could feel the sand trickling near my back when he moved. We were cold. They put a carpet over us. We had it in the car.”

She said the men started stripping the vehicle. Naidoo said the sounds told her there must have been more than 10 men stripping the car. 

“At this stage my uncle had been calling because we should have been there by now. They made me answer the phone. ‘Comply and tell them you are fine’. My uncle kept asking ‘Are you sure you are fine?’ I said I was fine and hung up. The hijackers told me ‘You did a good job’.”

SOS answered

Late that night another Toyota Hilux bakkie drove to the scene. Three men — also bound and gagged — joined Naidoo and the others while their car also was torn apart.

“If it wasn’t for those other guys who got hijacked, who knows what may have happened. They had two Trackers in their car. The men only found one.”

During the ordeal the seven were being hit and questioned about their possessions. Naidoo said the men stripping the car constantly spoke about killing them. 

“The next thing a Tracker Connect response vehicle comes racing to the scene followed by police and security. It was 1am when our saviour Jaco Grobbler [from Tracker Connect] came.

“They called my uncle and he came racing to the scene.”

The hostages were physically unharmed but for severe bruising on their wrists and bodies. 

“If the hijackers had left us there we would have had to walk quite a distance to safety. The Garmin showed the nearest garage was 20 minutes away by car.”

How do you know if the cops are legit?

Naidoo said police at the scene did not ask them any questions and they were told to go to the Heidelberg police station. 

“There was no way I was going to go to that station at 1am. The hijackers had police equipment, a gun, even a licence scanner. How do you know who you can trust?”

When they did lay a charge, Naidoo asked the charge office what would happen if they didn't stop and the police car had been legitimate.

“They said ‘many things’ could happen. As a law-abiding citizen I try to do everything right but then this happens. 

“I want police minister Bheki Cele to tell us what we need to do, and what he's going to do.

"The next morning we went back to the scene and it was full of vehicle body parts. This is happening all the time. As I speak to you I have received a message from another victim. It happened to them a few days before us. I have more than 30 messages from people about the same incident at the same place.

“My advice to anyone in that situation is: Do not stop!

“I am frustrated and traumatised.”

Melisa Jayram said she was having sleepless nights since the incident. She let Naidoo speak for the rest of the victims.

Jayram said they were going to receive counselling. 

Naidoo said Tracker had been calling but luckily the number came up as ‘private number’ on her phone so the hijackers did not know Tracker knew there was a problem.

Tracker Connect COO Duma Ngcobo said they were glad they could assist. 

He said the company had seen one of the vehicles stationary in the area and Grobbler was near the scene so he went to investigate. 

“When he approached,” Ngcobo said, “he saw a firearm in use and upon seeing us, they ran.”

Ngcobo said they had noticed a pattern of hijackings where victims were held hostage, instead of being dumped, and were extorted for money, card pins and other assets. 

Buddy system, tech aids

“My advice is for drivers to remain vigilant and know your surroundings. Criminals will often take advantage of drivers with lapses in concentration. You could show this by stopping too close to another vehicle. 

“Use tools to help you. We have a route tracker so family can follow your vehicle. Let people know where you are and when you expect to arrive. 

“This won't necessarily prevent every hijacking so if you are hijacked, act calm and co-operate. Take instructions and don’t make sudden movements which could compromise your life. In these instances people can be frightened so act calm. In many hijackings there is no harm to the victim.”

On Thursday TimesLIVE was contacted by another victim who experienced the same modus operandi in the same area. He was a truck driver who had seen Naidoo’s social media post about her experience. 

‘I had an R4 rifle pointed at my head as I was kneeling’

Two weeks ago on Friday, Lioso Balareae, 34, was making his way back to Johannesburg after a delivery in Villiers.

“Two men in a Golf 7 GTi stopped me at 8pm with lights and sirens on the N3 near the Benoni on-ramp.”

Balareae is from Thembisa and works for a cold chain company in Boksburg. 

“I wasn’t scared because we are usually pulled over. The car was marked and the men wore bulletproof vests. They carried large high-caliber weapons. They scanned my licence disk so I had no reason not to believe they were police.”

Balareae was tied with his shoelaces, assaulted with a rifle, and put into the boot of the Golf. 

He had spoken to Naidoo and told TimesLIVE that after talking to her, he realised he had been taken a few hundred metres from where she was held. He said it was close to Zonke landfill.

After the ordeal the hijackers left him on his belly with their overalls covering his body. 

When it was safe Balareae got up and walked to where he saw lights. A security guard helped him and called police. 

He said he still has sleepless nights. 

“At some point I had an R4 rifle pointed at my head as I was kneeling down. My advice is, if you are not feeling safe and you get flashed by police drive slowly to a police station or a petrol station. Don’t stop.”

In May TimesLIVE spoke to a mother and son who had very similar experiences to Naidoo and Balareae. They were also pulled over by men in police uniform, hijacked and left in a veld. 

TimesLIVE