A Cape Flats businessman who sells Christmas hampers sparked panic after informing his clients he’d been hijacked and robbed of R300 000 - the money he was going to use on their food orders.
Upset customers called Daily Voice on Tuesday, saying Charl Gordon, 33, told them he might not be able to deliver their hampers.
Gordon sent out SMS notifications to his customers and agents this week, explaining he had been hijacked, just days before he was due to deliver the hampers to clients.
But two disgruntled clients, who previously read about Gordon’s hamper woes in Daily Voice, said the story sounded “fishy”.
“We got an SMS stating he was hijacked along Varkensvlei Road in Philippi on Sunday. He said he had cooldrink hampers in his car and R300 000 cash with him,” one of the women explained.
“He said he was then dropped somewhere in Philippi but might make arrangements for us to get our goods. This is not sitting well with many of us as it is a very ‘convenient’ time to get hijacked, just before our deliveries.
“We have been paying R300 to R400 a month throughout the year for our meat hampers, hind quarter and lamb and other things to the value of R3 100.
“Christmas is nearly here and we are stressed. Who even travels on a Sunday, when the bank and butchers are closed, with that amount of money?
“He doesn’t even communicate with us, when I call, he rather says he will call me.”
Gordon said on Tuesday he had been hijacked but said both his car, a white VW Golf, and the R300 000 “had been recovered by police”.
He tells Daily Voice: “I was gun-pointed by three men on Sunday and dropped off. Monday, police contacted me to say they recovered my car. The car was not stripped, the cooldrink hampers were taken but fortunately the cash was recovered as it was hidden in the vehicle.
“The hampers will still go forth, there is just a slight delay in delivering. Clients with one or two orders can collect it from me.”
Captain FC van Wyk confirmed the matter and said a case of carjacking is being investigated.
In September this year, Gordon told Daily Voice he had lost over R20 000, and wanted to warn mense not to place any orders with anyone claiming to work for him.
He said five of his agents had been taking orders from customers, but failed to hand any money over to him.
Agent Kim Lee Bowman from Lavender Hill refused to speak and another, Sheldon Mentor, blamed non-paying customers.