A Durban man was shot in an armed robbery on the N2 highway in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Denzil Chetty, who is recovering in hospital, had been on his way home when he crashed into bricks that had been placed across the N2 north, near Spaghetti Junction in the Cato Manor area.
His cousin, Kuben Govender, said Chetty had called him to tell him something had happened to his car.
“While he was describing what was going on, I heard gunshots in the background. I told him to drive away quickly,” he said.
Chetty was shot in the abdomen, but managed to drive on to safety.
Govender said when he arrived at the scene, at least three other motorists had stopped at the roadside because they had also hit the obstacles.
“A couple in a VW Polo crashed into the bricks and stopped at the side of the road. About three or four men rushed towards them and I saw one of the men running off with the woman’s bag.
“There was also a truck that stopped and the driver fled. An Audi was also parked nearby. I am not sure if that person was robbed as well,” Govender said.
He said it appeared bricks and spikes had been placed on the road to stop motorists.
Govender said there was also a man standing on the bridge nearby and it seemed as if he was communicating with the robbers below.
Chetty was rushed to a nearby hospital.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Colonel Thembeka Mbele, confirmed that a case of attempted murder was being investigated by Cato Manor SAPS.
The attacks come just hours after KZN MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Mxolisi Kaunda, addressed Cato Manor police and crime fighting committees on toughening up their fight against crime.
This was Kaunda’s second visit to the area in the wake of an escalation in crime, especially murders.
Department spokesperson, Mluleki Mntungwa, noted that last year, similar incidents of items being placed on roads were reported but after police stepped up patrols, these stopped.
Kaunda said that new, tough measures would be employed to deal with all crime hotspots in the province.