‘I witnessed a murder’: Bystander describes hit-and-run in Rivonia

A hit-and-run incident that occurred in Rivonia, Gauteng, last Saturday has left South Africans stunned.

In the video shared on social media a man identified as a Zimbabwean believed to be working for Uber is seen being run over many times by the driver of a dark grey Ford Ranger at the intersection of 12th Avenue and Rivonia Road.

According to police and eyewitness reports, the suspect fled the scene.

Writer and communications strategist Sarah Britten, who witnessed the incident, took to Facebook to describe the horrifying scene.

“I witnessed a murder this afternoon. At the time, I thought it was an attempted murder, but I stayed at the scene long enough to witness the death of a stranger on a stretch of tarmac at the intersection of 12th Avenue and Rivonia Road,” she said.

Britten had filled up at a nearby petrol station when she noticed something that “didn’t make sense.”

“A dark grey Ford Ranger [was] driving over a person. At first, what I was seeing didn’t make sense. It was like something out of a movie. Then the bakkie accelerated over what was clearly a human being and barrelled into the road in front of me before driving off at high speed,” she recalled.

Britten said she stopped her car nearby and attempted to call for help while her daughter stayed in the back seat.

“I managed to dial Kanthan [my husband] and told him: ‘I’ve just witnessed an attempted murder.’ Then I tried to dial 911, but my fingers wouldn’t work because I was shaking.” she said.

Despite being near Sunninghill Hospital, Britten said it took more than 15 minutes for an ambulance to arrive. She noted confusion around the exact location, forcing her to call emergency services many times to redirect them to the scene.

“I called Netcare back and said they’d driven past to the wrong address. They probably wouldn’t have saved him anyway,” she said, hinting at the severity of the victim’s injuries.

During the wait, Britten learnt from bystanders that the incident may have stemmed from a domestic dispute involving the victim, a woman, and another man, reportedly the suspect.

“[People said] the guy had been in a relationship with a woman and there was a fight with the man she was married to. The driver of the Ford Ranger was Ugandan, apparently.”

She described a chaotic scene filled with witnesses, including delivery drivers and petrol attendants, one of whom helped her understand the victim was Zimbabwean.

When paramedics reached the victim, Britten said they asked for help to roll him over. She held the man by the legs and noted “his eyes were open, but not blinking”.

“I noticed when they moved his shirt there was a tattoo of a heart over the left side of his chest. The heart that wouldn’t restart.”

Britten said paramedics eventually stopped resuscitation efforts and covered the body with a gold foil blanket and said the place was a murder scene.

“[Another] witness was leaning against the cop’s bakkie. He was a little tearful. ‘I’ve seen this so many times,’ he said. I asked him if he needed a hug, he said ‘No, I’ll cry.’ ‘Well, I need a hug,’ I said. So we hugged one another.”

Police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi confirmed they are investigating the incident as a murder.

“Police members in Sandton received a complaint of an accident. On arrival, they found a man lying on the side of the road with injuries. They declared him dead. According to information , the suspect drove over the victim several times before fleeing the scene. The circumstances will be investigated,” said Nevhuhulwi.

Police have not yet confirmed the identity of the suspect or whether an arrest has been made.

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