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South Africa is grappling with a troubling rise in hijackings, with ride-hailing drivers and food and parcel delivery services increasingly falling prey to these dangerous attacks.

A recent video of an incident involving an e-hailing driver has gone viral on X, highlighting how e-hailing drivers are fearing for their lives.

Crime Watch presenter and journalist Yusuf Abramjee shared the footage, which seems to have been recorded on a dash camera, with the caption: “e-hailing driver robbed in Cape Town”.

In the video, you can see a man driving the car along with five passengers. All of a sudden one of them pulls the handbrake, bringing the car to a stop before all the people in the car assault the driver and take his phone. They even pepper spray the driver before checking that they’ve taken everything that they could.

The scene is shamelessly and senselessly brutal.

e-hailing driver robbed in Cape Town.#CrimeWatch pic.twitter.com/6Zea4zwvqM

— Yusuf Abramjee (@Abramjee) October 2, 2024

Per Jacaranda FM, there have been no further updates on the driver’s health.

BusinessTech notes that criminal syndicates are increasingly using these sectors as easy targets, driven by a boom in e-commerce and the high demand for fast deliveries. Disturbingly, a lot of these hijackings are premeditated, with criminals luring their victims by ordering rides or deliveries only to ambush them when they arrive.

There was once a driver we requested and upon arrival, he turned away right on the spot and refused to take us once he saw that it was 4 of us (3 guys & 1 girl). We are not criminals though and I still commend that guy to this day for his awareness💯 🙌

— Himothy The Himth (@ngyahlaphazisa_) October 2, 2024

As more consumers embrace the convenience of ordering goods, food, and transport services online, and the delivery infrastructure expands to cater to these demands, this creates a lucrative opportunity for hijackers on a daily basis.

[sources:jacarandafm&businesstech]