Cape Town – Police have requested that e-hailing service
drivers contact them for an escort when called
out to Nyanga for business, following the murder of a 30-year-old driver on Saturday in
Zwelitsha Drive.
It is alleged that the driver was called out to the area after 5am by a potential client.
He was later found dead in his vehicle with a gunshot wound to the head. Cartridges and a knife were found in the vehicle.
There was some damage to the vehicle. Police spokesperson Novela Potelwa said: “Detectives are still hard at work following leads, as well as the motive behind the murder, as no items were stolen from the deceased.
“As a long-term measure, Nyanga police are seeking an audience with the management of all e-hailing service companies doing business in the area in a bid to find a sustainable solution to attacks on their drivers.”
In July, Nyanga police also called on Uber and Bolt (formerly Taxify) drivers to avoid the Browns Farm Crossroads and Nyanga areas as robbers and hijackers continued to target them.
Bolt South Africa manager Gareth Taylor said the business was aware of the murder, but was yet to receive confirmation of the driver’s details or vehicle details, and unable to confirm if the deceased was registered on the Bolt platform.
“Our high priority team was alerted to investigate the matter further and are engaging with the Nyanga SAPS. Bolt unequivocally condemns violence of any form directed towards ride-hailing drivers.
"Crimes against ride-hailing drivers continue to be a national issue of great
concern and the safety of riders and
drivers utilising the Bolt platform is
of utmost importance to us.
"We believe that every South African has the right to earn a living and move around without risk of harm, intimidation, coercion, or fear of death or injury,” Taylor said.
Bolt was actively engaging with national, provincial and local government, and SAPS to address this scourge and work together to improve safety for ride-hailing drivers in Nyanga and further afield, he added.
“Bolt is continuously developing safety features and tools that have a real impact on addressing the safety concerns of drivers.
"This includes a partnership with Namola via an in-app integrated SOS emergency button that shares the driver's details and location with Namola’s 24/7 call centre, and then deploys private security and emergency services immediately.
Bolt also shares information from Namola and other sources about danger hotspots with drivers, and drivers can decline a trip if they are concerned about the safety of the pick-up location.”
Anyone with information about the incident can anonymously contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111 or SMS Crime Line at 32211.