Hijacked SPCA inspector jumps out of moving vehicle to seek help

Hijacked, handcuffed, and confined to the back of the vehicle, a cadet inspector from the Cape of Good Hope SPCA bravely kicked at the bakkie’s tailgate until it opened and jumped from the moving vehicle into the street.

The inspector, Nkosi Sindiwe, was hijacked in Khayelitsha on Tuesday, 13 June, when the SPCA vehicle he was driving was intercepted by six armed men.

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE SPCA INSPECTOR HIJACKED

Chief Inspector Jaco Pieterse said this alarming incident highlights the immense risks SPCA inspectors face in carrying out their animal rescue work and is not an isolated occurrence.

“This is not the first time that one of our vehicles has been hijacked. In the last year, we lost one vehicle in a hijacking, had 2 attempted hijackings, and now this incident,” he said.

ALSO READ: SPCA ‘overwhelmed’ as owners surrender Pitbulls in numbers

Sindiwe said he was driving in Khayelitsha at around 19:30 on Tuesday when two vehicles, one in the front and one behind him, blocked the road, and six armed men appeared.

Sindiwe said two men were on each side of the vehicle, and they banged on the driver’s window with a gun.

“I had to open the door, or they would have shot me. I turned off the vehicle because I knew they couldn’t start it without the transponder tag to override the immobilizer system. I was trying to save the car because the SPCA desperately needs it to rescue animals, but it didn’t work. They pointed the gun at me again, and I had to show them how to start the bakkie,” he explained.

ALSO READ: SPCA offers reward for a man who had sex with a pregnant goat

GOOD SAMARITAN COMES TO RESCUE

The inspector was robbed of his wallet and cell phone. He was then handcuffed and thrown in the back of the bakkie.

“I was scared for my life but glad that there were no animals in my vehicle, and I only had to think of how to save myself.”

Nsindiwe said he managed to position himself feet forward and bravely kicked at the bakkie’s tailgate and canopy lock with all his might. Luckily, it eventually gave way, and he threw himself with equal force from the moving vehicle and onto the road before running, injured from the fall, handcuffed, and screaming for help.

Fortunately, a good Samaritan was driving by and heard his cries for help.

The individual bundled him into his car and drove him to the closest police station. He also allowed him to use his cell phone to call the Cape of Good Hope SPCA.

ALSO READ: LOOK: Cape dog seeks veterinary help on his own

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES BY NOKWANDA NCWANE