Hijacked water tanker – and trailer stolen nearly a decade ago – recovered
A municipal water tanker hijacked in eMzinoni, near Bethal, last week (Thursday 20 August) was located on Friday approximately 400 km away in Kanyamzane, outside Mbombela (Nelspruit). In addition to this success, a trailer that had been stolen in Middelburg back in 2017 was also found in the suspects’ possession. This follows due to the alertness of AfriForum, who worked in collaboration with local security stakeholders and a private tracking company to locate the tanker.
Shortly after news of the hijacking in Bethal broke, Hennie Bekker, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for the Mpumalanga Highveld, contacted private control rooms in the region to try and locate the truck on security cameras. The truck was spotted near Mbombela (Nelspruit) at approximately 20:00. AfriForum’s Nelspruit neighbourhood watch was informed of the hijacked vehicle’s location, after which the private tracking service Netstar conducted further investigations. Neighbourhood watch members were also instructed to stop the truck and apprehend the suspects if it was spotted.
Netstar successfully recovered the truck.
According to Bekker, the hijacking is likely the work of a syndicate intent on stealing water tanker trucks.
Research conducted by Tracker, one of the country’s largest vehicle tracking and theft recovery companies, identified Mpumalanga in 2025 as a new hotspot for hijackings, particularly involving business vehicles and trucks.
“Due to its location bordering Mozambique, Mpumalanga is a vulnerable target for hijackings, and the province’s road network offers an ideal escape route for criminals to take stolen vehicles across the border. Greater awareness of the province’s ‘weak points’ – which make it susceptible and attractive to hijackers – is therefore essential so that proactive measures can be taken to combat this crime or to swiftly intervene when criminals strike,” explains Bekker.
“Cooperation between the community and private security stakeholders played a critical role in this operation, helping to ensure the hijacked truck was quickly recovered. Furthermore, the use of technology and the preparedness of those involved proved decisive, underscoring that criminals will not gain the upper hand in our community,” he concludes.
