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Johannesburg - The police and a private tracking company on Thursday recovered a white Mercedes-Benz which had been hijacked in less than a minute at a filling station in Johannesburg.
Police spokesperson Captain Balan Muthan said the car – a little worse for wear – had been found in Kagiso, Netwerk24 reported.
The hijacking caused a sensation on social media after activist Yusuf Abramjee posted CCTV footage of the incident on Facebook.
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In the video it can be seen how a petrol attendant walks away from the car at 20:01:18 after filling it.
Five seconds later a dark car slowly drives past the Mercedes-Benz at the filling station.
About 12 seconds later two masked men – one armed – run around the back of the Mercedes-Benz. The armed man leans into the car on the driver’s side.
Another masked hijacker peeps through the window on the passenger side of the car three seconds later.
On the CCTV footage the hijackers can be seen yanking open the driver’s door at 20:01:48 and a man getting out.
Four seconds later the owner can be seen standing with his hands in the air while the hijackers jump into the car.
By 20:02:01 the hijackers had already sped off.
Muthan confirmed that the driver of the car was unharmed.
He said the driver had immediately contacted his tracker company who, in turn, helped police find the car.
