27 October 2004
Prepared by:
Inspector Riaan Steenkamp
Elsburg SAPS
Sponsored By:
Netstar
HIJACKING AWARENESS GUIDE
CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION 3
2. HOW TO AVOID A HIJACK SITUATION 3
2.1 Take Precautions: 3
2.2 Don’t Be Fooled By: 3
2.3 Know Your Environment : 3
3. HOW TO REDUCE THE RISK 4
3.1 When Entering Your Vehicle and While Driving: 4
3.2 When Parking Your Vehicle: 4
4. WHAT IS A SUSPICIOUS VEHICLE/PERSON? 5
4.1 Vehicles 5
4.2 Persons 5
5. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 5
5.1 WHEN AM I THE MOST VULNERABLE? 5
5.2 WHO ARE THESE HIJACKERS ? 6
5.3 ARE THERE DIFFERENT TYPES OF HIJACKING ? 6
5.4 WHAT PREVENTATIVE MEASURES CAN I TAKE REGARDING MY PROPERTY ? 7
5.5 HOW SHOULD I RESPOND IN THE EVENT OF BEING HIJACKED ? 7
HIJACKING AWARENESS GUIDE
1. Introduction
This document was designed with the following in mind:
- To educate the public
- To assist the public in recognising what a suspicious vehicle and person may look like
- To emphasise the seriousness of hijackings on the person reading this awareness guide.
Hijacking is not a new or unique problem to South Africa.
The first hijacking was recorded in 1984.
Between January and August 1996, there were 8 740 hijackings in South Africa, of which 5 251 were in
Gauteng.
Hijacking is also not only a problem just associated with industrial areas; e.g. Wadeville in Germiston, but
rather a problem associated with the availability of a certain type of vehicle.
In 90% of these cases the hijackers were armed, although only 1% of attacks involved a fatal shooting. This
means that the better prepared a potential victim is, the greater probability of the person surviving the attack
with limited physical injury.
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