‘We both thought this was it’
US couple tell of horrific hijacking on road near PE
AN American couple stabbed, tied up and robbed while taking photographs on a road outside Port Elizabeth thought they were going to die until a police helicopter flew above them.
Husband and wife Verna Yocum, 67, and Robert Webb, 60, who managed to untie themselves on Wednesday night, were rescued after waving at the police helicopter.
“We both thought that this was it. When we heard the helicopter hovering over us we saw some hope,” Yocum said.
Despite the horrific ordeal on the R334, the couple vowed to return to South Africa.
“They threatened to kill us the entire time, it was very scary.
“But this is our fifth trip to South Africa and, while the robbery was definitely not a nice experience, the people we have met through this have been absolutely amazing.
“Everyone is just so friendly and helpful.”
The couple praised the police for the compassionate way they had dealt with them.
They were tied up and threatened with pangas and knives when five men ambushed them while they were walking back to their car parked nearby.
The couple, who own a plant nursery in Arizona that specialises mainly in African succulents, were on a “flora safari”.
The hijacking happened while they were en route from Steytlerville to Grahamstown, shortly after stopping at a hiking trail.
The area is the only place in the world where a type of aloe and other succulents are found.
“We were walking back to the car and saw one of them walking towards us and another diving into the bushes. It was then when we both knew we were in trouble,” Webb said.
“That man was then joined by others who jumped out of the bush and grabbed us.
“I did not resist, but Verna did put up a bit of a fight and they stabbed her in the arm with a screwdriver.”
The couple were then forced into their vehicle.
“All five got into the car, one lay across us on the back seat and they forced our heads down, I presume so no one could see us while they were driving.”
The couple were driven to a nearby bush and forced out of the vehicle.
They were then tied up and instructed to sit under a tree.
“I told them we would comply and handed them everything,” Yocum said.
“Once they saw we were complying they seemed to calm down. They became agitated when we could not get our wedding rings off.”
Within about 15 minutes of the men fleeing, a passing farmer alerted police to the abandoned vehicle in the bushes.
Webb managed to untie his feet and Yocum her hands.
“We managed to get free and get out from under the tree. We waved and shouted at the helicopter and they spotted us,” Webb said.
Within minutes the police arrived.
Yocum said they had lost everything in the robbery, from cameras to passports, wallets and plane tickets.
Since the incident, Motherwell cluster detective LieutenantColonel Marlize Dipenaar has been escorting the couple in Nelson Mandela Bay.
“The SAPS in my opinion must be one of the best in the world,” Webb said.
“They have taken us to the hospital to get medication and even to the shopping centre to buy some items.
“They even assisted by booking us into a hotel and contacted the airline and embassy for our passports.
“This is the type of police force you as South Africans should be proud of and the American police should take some notes from their book.”
Police spokesman Captain Andre Beetge said the investigation was ongoing.