Taxi rank a crime hub

Bellville shootings give way to sex assault

BELLVILLE taxi rank, where rival taxi associations have exchanged gunfire, has now become the site of attacks on woman passengers, with several incidents reported in the past few days.

Following one attack, traffic officers arrested a taxi driver and his assistant on charges of robbery, kidnapping and assault after they noticed a woman in a taxi screaming and banging against the door of the vehicle.

City Traffic Services spokesperson Richard Coleman said the woman said she boarded the taxi from Goodwood to Bellville via Voortrekker Road, but the driver went off route and instructed the guard to rob her.

Coleman said that at the time of the attack officers had been engaged in an operation along Jakes Gerwel Drive.

He said when officers stopped the vehicle, the woman informed them that the taxi driver and his guard had pepper sprayed her and robbed her of her handbag and watch.

He said officers accompanied the 29-year-old woman to Goodwood police station, where a docket was opened and the suspects, aged 29 and 27, were detained.

Coleman said the taxi was impounded for operating without a proper permit.

In another incident, police recently issued an alert that they needed assistance in tracing a taxi driver as part of their investigation into an attempted rape.

The suspect had allegedly choked and undressed a female passenger in the taxi at the Bellville taxi rank.

Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi said the victim had travelled from Philippi to Bellville.

Upon arrival at the taxi rank, the driver moved to the back of the vehicle, where he undressed her.

Swartbooi said there was an argument and the driver allegedly choked the woman until she passed out.

“Moments later, she found her underwear next to her on the floor in the taxi, after which she was ordered to dress and to leave.”

He said Bellville police registered a case of attempted rape for further investigation. The suspect was believed to be in the Browns Farm area.

On Saturday, a 35-year-old woman was allegedly robbed of her valuables in a taxi in Voortrekker Road in Maitland. Two unknown men searched her at gunpoint.

Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association secretary-general Mandla Hermanus said he was not aware of the incidents. However, he would enquire from colleagues.

Congress of Democratic Taxi Associations spokesperson Andile Khanyi said none of the incidents had been reported to them. He said Bellville was a big route and was also a transport interchange.

Transport and Public Works MEC Daylin Mitchell’s spokesperson, Ntomboxolo Makoba-Somdaka, said he deeply regretted the incidents, and believed the police would investigate and bring the perpetrators to book.

SA National Taxi Council provincial spokesperson Gershon Geyer condemned the heinous acts of criminality in the taxi industry.

“We hope that the law enforcement agencies will catch these people If caught, they should get the harshest punishment possible,” Geyer said.

Anyone with information can contact their nearest police station or Crime Stop at 08600 10111.