Hijackers force truck off road

A meat delivery truck was forced off the road on Thursday by a gunman who fired a shot at the driver when he tried to speed away near Wells Estate.

The hijacking saw the refrigeration truck forced off the R335 at about 10.10am.

Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said the 35-year-old driver was heading to Newton Park.

“As he was driving on the R335 towards the N2, a white Isuzu bakkie overtook him.

“At the back of the bakkie there was a man who signalled for the driver to stop.

“He ignored him and tried to overtake, but the man pulled out a firearm and fired a shot at the delivery van.

“The driver pulled over and was held at gunpoint.”

Beetge said the driver was taken to the back of the bakkie and driven to Perseverance, where he was dropped off.

“A passerby stopped and took him to the Swartkops police station,” he said.

The truck was later found abandoned, with all the stock missing, in New Brighton.

The value of the stolen stock has not been established.

The robbery occurred hours after an incident in Motherwell in which a 46-year-old man was hijacked in his Nissan bakkie by three men, one of whom was armed.

“He had stopped outside his home at about 8pm when three men ran up to his vehicle,” Beetge said.

“The men then demanded his cellphone and vehicle keys, before speeding off with him in the car.”

Beetge said after the men drove around, they dropped the man off on the R334.