A woman has spoken out after being assaulted and nearly kidnapped by an e-hailing driver and his two accomplices.
Nomaxabiso Tshabalala, 35, says she was robbed at gunpoint by a driver from inDrive and two other men who robbed her in Makhaza, Khayelitsha, last month.
She explains: “On that Sunday, July 21, we were going to have a staff lunch at my workplace and that day I didn't do the safety measures that one has to do when taking a ride.
“I requested to go to Gatesville, and the driver called, saying he was outside the gate waiting for me. When I arrived at the car I indicated that I wanted to sit at the back, because I was carrying a lot of stuff with me, and when I opened the door I realised the door was being pushed from the inside.
“Someone came out of that vehicle pointing a gun at me and told me if I screamed, he would shoot me while the other two were sitting inside.
“I told him that I wouldn't get inside the car and that's when he started to slap me. After that, he took all my bags and my house keys and also demanded my password for my banking app, and they ran away,” Nomaxabiso says.
She opened a case at the Makhaza police station but was shocked to learn the case had been closed two days later with no arrests being made.
She says when she called the investigation officer, he said “a lot of bad things” to her.
Police spokesperson Anelisiwe Manyana encouraged Nomaxabiso to make an appointment with the station management to raise her concerns.
inDrive Africa spokesperson Lineo Thakhisi says they have permanently removed the driver from their platform and are fully cooperating with authorities.
“Additionally, we are ready to offer counselling support to help (the victim) through this challenging time.”
Omar Parker, Western Cape E-hailing Association (WCEA), said, "It is very concerning to see that the e-hailing services environment has been infiltrated with criminals that pose danger to our drivers and passengers."
"Lately, we have noticed a syndicate of criminals using these services and imitating drivers in order to extort us well. We have been telling these companies to introduce more screening measures when it comes to drivers that want to come into the system,” Parker said.