It has been 12 agonising days for the Mvukuzo family since Siyabonga Mvukuzo, a 37-year-old father of three, disappeared on May 2.
Mvukuzo, a technician at a motor dealership in Rivonia, Johannesburg, disappeared under mysterious circumstances on his way to his Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, home.
He was last heard from on the evening of May 2. His friend Tshepo Mochena, believed to be the last person to speak to him on the phone, recalled their conversation. “In our last call just after 7pm, Siyabonga said he was approaching Kempton Park. A few minutes into the call, I heard someone say: ‘Get out of the car’,” he said.
I think he did because he didn’t say anything after that but the phone line stayed open. I then heard someone say: ‘Get a rope'. That is when I knew something was wrong.”
After that chilling exchange, there was no further contact from Mvukuzo, Mochena said.
Gauteng police spokesperson Col Mavela Masondo said a case of hijacking and kidnapping has been opened. “The victim is still missing and the search is continuing,” he said.
We found the car but not him. It was barely stripped, which is strange.
— Siyabonga's brother, Nonthuthuzelo
Nonthuthuzelo Mvukuzo said his brother had been travelling back from their family home in Libode, Eastern Cape, on that day. “He kept us updated on his whereabouts along the way, and we understood he was using the N3 highway,” she said.
“Sometime in the afternoon, my sister said she had heard from him as he took a toilet break somewhere in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal, and that was the last time a family member spoke to him. Around 8pm, I tried calling him but he didn’t answer. I didn’t think much of it until later that night when my sister called to say he had been hijacked as told by his friend.”
The family’s fears deepened the next morning when his vehicle was discovered abandoned in a field in Vosloorus Extension 28 in Ekurhuleni. “We found the car but not him. It was barely stripped, which is strange,” said Nonthuthuzelo.
“It’s like they were looking for something maybe the tracker and when they didn’t find it, they just dumped the car. Nothing was taken from his bank account, and there have been no ransom demands. It doesn’t feel like a typical hijacking, it feels personal.”
The sister said the conflicting information about Mvukuzo’s last known location was further complicating the investigation. While he allegedly told Mochena he was near Kempton Park, police told the family his phone signal was last detected in Zonkizizwe.
"Police say CCTV cameras along the suspected route failed to capture any trace of him or his vehicle. He can’t have just disappeared with no trace,” said Nonthuthuzelo.
The family is desperate for answers. “He is a loving father, not a violent person, and has no shady background. We just want to know what happened to him or where he is.”
SowetanLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.