Woman kidnapped on way to popular Port St Johns resort

(Photo: Mike Bolhuis)

22 Sep 2024

The police and private investigators in the Eastern Cape are still searching for a Cape Town woman after she was kidnapped on her way to a Port St Johns resort.

Cape Town resident Alize van der Merwe was kidnapped on her way to the Umngazi Resort in Port St Johns on Friday afternoon, Eastern Cape police have confirmed.

Hawks spokesperson Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana said they can confirm that a 39-year-old victim was kidnapped on 20 September 2024 at about 1pm.

“It is alleged that the victim was travelling towards the Umngazi Resort, Port St Johns, driving a Toyota Fortuner where she was accosted by unknown suspects. Her vehicle was reportedly found abandoned not far from the resort,” Mhlakuvana said.

“Later on, the reports indicated that the family received phone calls from the suspects demanding a ransom. The victim has not yet been found at the moment. The Hawks are investigating a kidnapping case, and the police are working around the clock to rescue the victim unharmed. The investigation is still ongoing.”

The provincial Hawks head, Major General Mboiki Obed Ngwenya, said anyone with information about the incident should call the police immediately.

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Mike Bolhuis Specialist Investigators are handling the case and said in a statement that the woman had rented a white Toyota Fortuner (Registration LX73KLGP) from Hertz Vehicle Hire in East London and was driving alone on the N2 towards the Umngazi Resort.

Her last communication with her family had been at about 11.30am when she mentioned she was planning to stop, likely at the Shell Ultra City in Mthatha (N2).

“At approximately 15:13, the family received a call informing them that Alize had been kidnapped. No further details were provided,” the statement said.

Tracking data indicate that the vehicle was abandoned between Dumasi and the Umngazi Resort.

kidnapped The victim’s Toyota Fortuner. (Photo: Mike Bolhuis)

Div de Villiers, spokesperson for an Eastern Cape environmental public interest group, Green Ripple, and chairperson of the Wild Coast Development Forum, said they are deeply concerned about the kidnappings and extortion on the Wild Coast and the severe repercussions these were having on the economy and the lives of people in the province who rely on tourism for their livelihoods.

“The impact is starting to be felt in the wider Eastern Cape with holidays being cancelled. The previous kidnapping at the Pont, Great Kei River Mouth, earlier this month led to people questioning whether they should come to the Wild Coast or head to other provinces,” he said.

That incident involved three people who were kidnapped for ransom from a restaurant in the area. However, Mhlakuvana said the victims’ family refused to divulge any more details. The Hawks have not yet arrested anybody for this crime.

“The MECs and ministers of branches of government must come out strongly against these heinous acts, and pit all the expertise they can muster into busting ruthless syndicates whose attacks are becoming ever more prevalent and brazen,” De Villiers added.

Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism also expressed its deep concern about “escalating incidents of criminality against tourists”.

It cautioned that these will have a far-reaching and devastating effect on tourism and those who depend on it for their livelihoods in the province, as well as undermine the provincial economy.

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Police reinforcements were sent to Mthatha earlier this month, and two weeks ago Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola said he would send more. His visit came after members of the National Intervention Unit were attacked and shot at when they arrived for operations in Mthatha.

A self-styled traditional leader, Dalinzolo “Sakie” Mareke, believed to be behind some of the extortion cases in Mthatha, and two of his men were killed after a violent confrontation with the police on 4 September. DM

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