A manhunt is underway for two suspects accused of accosting and robbing two joggers preparing for the Comrades Marathon and a driver of a broken-down bakkie on the R102 between Palmview and Ottawa.
The search for the suspects follows the arrest of their accomplice, a 29-year-old man. The men have been terrorising motorists and residents alike, and are suspected to be linked to the robbery incident where a 56-year-old man suffered a heart attack at the scene.
One of the Comrades runners, a 52-year-old scholar transport provider from Verulam, Anitha Sewnarian, said that they were left traumatised by the incident. Sewnarian said she and a friend, who are members of Phoenix Villagers Athletic Club, were training for the upcoming Comrades Marathon on the R102 at the time of the robbery.
“My friend and I have each run the Comrades multiple times, this will be my sixth attempt and her eleventh. We left home for a training run at 7.50am and by 8.40am we were running across the bridge on the R102 towards the robots at the Palmview intersection when we noticed three men coming towards us in the other direction.”
Sewnarian spotted the men at a distance but did not think much of them until the suspects withdrew their weapons.
“One of the men had a knife, one a pipe, and the other a gun. The man with the pipe and the knife approached my friend while the man with the gun placed it on my stomach. My friend and I both screamed and ran across into the oncoming lane. I did not care if I was going to be hit by a car, I did not want to get shot,” said Sewnarian.
Along the R102 was a broken-down blue bakkie awaiting aid, the suspects quickly switched to targeting him. “The man with the gun turned his attention to the driver and held him up. He saw what happened to us and we watched what happened to him. They took his wallet, cash, and his cellphone,” said Sewnarian.
The bakkie driver had already called for assistance when he broke down, before the robbery. A white Isuzu bakkie arrived on the scene to help repair his vehicle but one of the two occupants suffered a heart attack on scene after learning of the robbery.
Prem Balram, head of Reaction Unit South Africa, said they received calls of the robbery and dispatched a reaction officer. On route, the officers were updated that an unknown person suffered cardiac arrest and paramedics were also dispatched to the scene.
“Upon arrival, paramedics stabilised an adult man seated in the back seat of a white Isuzu bakkie. He was transported to a local hospital,” said Balram.
Sewnarian said that this experience was very traumatic for her and her friend, who were preparing for the ultra marathon on Sunday, 9 June.
“Runners like us are repeatedly targeted and robbed on the R102. I have been using this route for 12 years. I train six times a week and cannot afford to go to the beach to do my runs every day due to the cost of petrol, nor can I participate in planned runs every week due to the entry costs. Running on the R102 gives me the distance I need and it does not cost much but it’s not safe for us to run, this is the third time we have been targeted on the R102,” said Sewnarian.
The avid runner alleged that in November last year, two men tried to kidnap her but she managed to outrun them. She says the first time she was held at gunpoint on the R102 the men took her phone, and her smart watch and were going to take the running shoes off her feet but fled when she flagged down a passersby.
“I do not understand, we are just runners, why are they troubling us? The Comrades Marathon is around the corner and we only have a few weeks to prepare, however, since the robbery I have been too afraid to train. It’s not only runners that are being targeted, even motorists are being attacked. We need more police patrols along this road to ensure our safety,” said Sewnarian.
Constable Bongiwe Ngcobo, Verulam SAPS communications officer, said that a case has been opened and is currently under investigation. “A 29-year-old male suspect was arrested on the same day after being pointed out by the joggers. He is facing charges of robbery. The other two suspects have not yet been arrested,” said Cst Ngcobo.
