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The Hawks have confirmed that Alize van der Merwe and another kidnapping victim were dropped off at the Sulenkama Police Station in the Eastern Cape yesterday afternoon.

Hawks spokesperson Ndiphilwe Mhlakuvana confirmed the second kidnapping victim, a businesswoman visiting the area from China, was taken on the road between Barkly East and Elliot three days before Van der Merwe.

Van der Merwe, 39, was kidnapped last Friday while driving from Mthatha to the Umngazi Hotel and Spa on the Wild Coast. She was kept with a Chinese woman, who was abducted between Elliot and Barkly East last Tuesday.

The Hawks claimed the car used to kidnap Van der Merwe was the same one used to kidnap the Chinese woman three days before.

According to reports, both women were freed on Thursday afternoon after their kidnappers allegedly “panicked” because they realised police were closing in and on the verge of arresting them.

Mhakuvana said that he thinks the reason the women were dropped off at the police station was because the Hawks investigation put pressure on the kidnappers.

“The Hawks can confirm that two kidnapping victims, a 39-year-old and 34-year-old, were released by the suspects on 26 September 2024 at approximately 12.15 in the afternoon. It is reported the victims were dropped off by a white Toyota single-cab bakkie near Sulenkama Police Station. Their release came after the pressure exerted by the police on the suspects.”

Sulenkama, where the women were kept during their ordeal, is around 130 kilometres from Elliot and 180km from Port St. Johns and is an infamous settlement in the Qumbu region. According to the source, a team of investigators has been patrolling the Qumbu area for the past few days after it was discovered that the two ladies were being held there.

“Further reports divulged that the victims are traumatised, and they are going to be taken to the nearest hospital for medical attention.”

Mhakuvana further stated that they had not yet connected this case to the shooting event in which four suspects were killed and a fifth was injured when the police’s tactical response team searched a house in Keiskammahoek on Wednesday. Keiskammahoek is about a five-hour trip from where the women were discovered.

According to News24, no ransom was paid for the women. Van der Merwe’s family said they were “extremely happy” that she had been returned to safety.

[source:dailymaverick&news24]