Helpline call saves man

2003-06-06 08:16

Elaine Anderson

Pietermaritzburg - A call to Vodacom's emergency helpline saved the life of a Prestbury man during an attempted hijacking in West Street on Wednesday.

Nirdosh Maharaj (29), a mobile banker for Nedbank, said he was heading down West Street when he got a call on his cellphone.

"I pulled off the road and leaned over to the passenger side to write some details in my diary when I heard a tap on the passenger side window. I looked up and into the barrel of a gun.

"A very dark man, wearing a traditional kurtha dress and trousers and a white Muslim cap, was pointing a gun at me. I quickly moved to my side of the car, and two men, one armed with a brick and the other with a huge butcher's knife, appeared at the window," he said.

Maharaj said he realised his door was not locked and he quickly pushed the latch down as one of the hijackers tried to open the door.

"As the one with the brick lifted his hand to smash the window, I put my head down and accelerated. The gunman chased after me, pointing the gun at the car and I made as though I was reaching down for something. He stopped advancing towards me and ran away," said Maharaj.

He turned the vehicle around and tried to run over the two other men "but my anti-hijack device kicked in and the car stalled and switched off".

Maharaj said he phoned the Vodacom emergency service who linked him up with the Alexandra Road Police Station.

"Within two minutes Detective Inspector Vijay Maharaj, Inspector Wolfaardt and Inspector RS Chetty were here, and two other policemen on horseback. They were fantastic. They stayed with me until it was all over. They even re-activated my alarm system for me and got me going," he said.

Maharaj said two of the hijackers were arrested but the gunman wearing the kurtha escaped.

Police spokesperson Captain Joshua Gwala said the two arrested men were positively identified. The arrested suspects might be linked to other similar incidents.

Anyone with information on the third suspect is asked to call Detective Inspector V Maharaj on 033 845 7712 or Crime Stop on 0860 10111.

- The Witness