Pretoria – A 36-year-old woman, Antoinette Chiloane from Bushbuckridge, was granted R3 000 bail after she was arrested by the police in Mpumalanga for allegedly faking a hijacking.
Provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala warned community members against reporting fake cases.
“Police in Mpumalanga have warned people not to create the impression that crime is on the rise by reporting false cases,” Mohlala said.
“Antoinette Chiloane from Bushbuckridge made a brief appearance before Bushbuckridge Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 21 October 2022, after she previously reported a false hijacking case that (purportedly) occurred in Saselani in Bushbuckridge. According to Chiloane, she lied under oath that she was travelling alone with her VW Polo when she was approached by three suspects who pointed at her with firearms.”
In the police report, Chiloane allegedly said she was forcefully pushed into the back of her car and the suspects drove off with her.
“She further alleged that she was dropped off at Hlamalani, where she was under guard, by one of the hijackers who later left her alone. Chiloane later reported the case to the police,” Mohlala said.
“The car was recovered in Acornhoek policing area after it was intercepted during the commission of crime. It was found loaded with properties which were allegedly stolen from a hijacked truck.”
The alleged hijackers fled the scene when police arrived, leaving the vehicle unattended.
Chiloane was questioned further by police, and later disclosed that she had faked her hijacking. She allegedly revealed that she had voluntarily given her car to her boyfriend, for the planned delivery truck hijacking.
“She was arrested, hence her appearance in court where she was released on R3 000 bail and is expected to make her second appearance on Monday, 7 November 2022,” Mohlala said.
“The suspect’s boyfriend and his accomplices are still on the run.”
Meanwhile, provincial commissioner of police in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant-General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela welcomed Chiloane’s arrest and warned community members not to report false cases.
“On its own, such reports deprive other community members who need services from the police,” she said.
Earlier this month, a 30-year-old man appeared before the Durban Magistrate’s Court after he allegedly faked a kidnapping and hijacking ordeal to police.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala said on October 3, the man reported to Montclair police that he was hijacked by three unknown men while he was on South Coast Road in Rossburgh, south of Durban.
Gwala said the man said he was forced into the vehicle and was driven around for two hours before he was dropped off at a mall and charges of hijacking and kidnapping were opened for investigation.
The vehicle was later found abandoned in Dove Crescent, Montclair, Gwala said.
“After an intensive investigation, police discovered that the complainant was never at the shop where he alleged that he was hijacked and his vehicle was used in a business robbery at Brighton Beach,” Gwala said.
IOL