A management consultant and friend of former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba narrowly escaped a hijacking at his Saxonwold residence in Johannesburg on 30 December last year.

The businessman, who has asked to remain anonymous for safety concerns, was returning home from the airport in a hired taxi when an unidentified vehicle followed them into his driveway. The incident was captured on the property’s private security cameras.

“Once we had entered the first gate, I asked the driver to stop so that I could check that the gate was closing behind us, and that’s when I saw the other vehicle,” he told News24.

His immediate reaction was to activate the outside alarm motion sensors but he quickly realised it wasn’t going to help.

“It was almost surreal, a double-take moment. I then quickly opened the second gate and told the driver to move!” he said.

The gate didn’t open fast enough, which prevented their first getaway attempt but after reversing they were able to speed away to safety.

“I’m very thankful that nothing happened. My community was very supportive but I’m sad that this has become so normalised. I hope that this encourages people to become more vigilant,” he said.

Gauteng SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters said police were investigating the case and was treating it as an isolated incident. No arrests have been made.