Uber driver hijacked in Cape Town

[schumi]

Cape Town –*An Uber driver was hijacked outside Cape Town International Airport on Thursday night, the company confirmed.

"We have been in touch with the rider and driver-partner to offer our support and we are relieved to hear both of them are okay," an Uber spokesperson said in response to an email enquiry.

"An investigation into the incident is underway."

No further details of the incident were available.

Times Media digital editor, Andrew Trench, tweeted earlier on Thursday night that the Uber driver who had picked him up at the airport had been hijacked.

@Uber_RSA one of your driver's hijacked at Cape Town International now. I was thrown from car and am safe but worried about the guy— andrewtrench (@andrewtrench) April 7, 2016

Trench expressed relief that the driver was safe.

Uber said, "The threats and intimidation against people who want to use the Uber platform are unacceptable. We are deeply committed to the safety of riders and drivers and we take any incident where safety is compromised very seriously."

Last month, 60-year-old Uber taxi driver, Webb-Law Chehore, was shot near the Baxter Theatre*in Rondebosch, Cape Town.

He had been waiting for a client outside an apartment block around 05:00 when he was shot. The motive remains unclear.

Chehore's son, Nani,*took to social media shortly after the murder, offering a reward for information that would lead to arrests in a campaign titled #JusticeForWebbLaw.

News24
Link: http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/uber-driver-hijacked-in-cape-town-20160407

 

[saor]

Sorry to moan - but one of the things that annoys me with News24 articles is they almost always tag on some facts at the end from a similar story. I don't need a double-whammy of bad news every time you write an article. "Guy killed with shovel.....oh yeah and remember the guy who was killed by an axe yesterday".

 

[schumi]

‘He was petrified’ - passenger on hijacked Uber driver

Cape Town - The passenger of an Uber taxi cab that was hijacked at Cape Town International Airport on Thursday night has said the driver was petrified after three men stopped the vehicle, forced the passenger out and abducted the driver.

Times Media Group's digital editor Andrew Trench had ordered the Uber after arriving at the airport from Johannesburg.

“As we were reversing out of the parking garage, three guys hopped out of another car and came to the driver’s window," Trench told News24 on Friday.

“Two of the guys tackled the driver and tried to take his phone and car keys, they tried to pull him out of the car.

“They yelled at me to get out. I told them to calm down and I took my bag. Once I was out they kind of muscled me out of the way.”

Trench said he didn't see any weapons but can't be sure if they were armed. Two of the men then drove off in the car with the Uber driver inside.

'The whole thing was really bizarre'

Trench went straight to the police at the airport, and was assisted by three officers. He described them as “marginally effective”. He also tweeted Uber about the incident.

“They [Uber] actually responded super quickly. I gave them my account and they traced the driver’s details.”

Trench said he saw the Uber cab drive by a second time, with the three individuals still inside.

“When I first got into the car, the driver actually told me that things were really crazy there at the moment, but he didn’t get a chance to explain,” he continued.

“The whole thing was really bizarre.”

When asked if he felt like his own life was in danger, Trench said: “Well I flashed pretty quickly that this was not a normal hijacking. They went straight for the driver.

“They were actually relaxed about it [once I was out of the car]. I was just worried that they were going to kill the driver.”

Trench said he suspected the hijacking had more to do with a driver’s strike, and efforts to intimidate Uber drivers.

Intimidation 'unacceptable'
Uber confirmed to News24 on Thursday night that the driver was okay, and said any intimidation of their drivers and riders was "unacceptable".

"We have been in touch with the rider and driver-partner to offer our support and we are relieved to hear both of them are okay," an Uber spokesperson said.

"An investigation into the incident is underway.

"The threats and intimidation against people who want to use the Uber platform are unacceptable. We are deeply committed to the safety of riders and drivers and we take any incident where safety is compromised very seriously."

Link
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/he-was-petrified-passenger-on-hijacked-uber-driver-20160408