A NELSON Mandela Bay man is being investigated for allegedly lying to police about being hijacked in the Boardwalk car park.
This incident, which reportedly took place on Wednesday night, has prompted police to warn all false cases reported to police would result in the arrest of the alleged victims for perjury.
The 39-year-old man from Colchester, whom police declined to name as he was a prime suspect in their investigation, claimed to have gone to the Boardwalk to deliver R5000 for building supplies.
Police spokesperson Captain Stanley Jarvis said the man claimed to have been held hostage by three knife-wielding men, who then forced him back into his bakkie.
"He said that one of the men climbed into the vehicle and held him at knifepoint while the other two men climbed onto the back of the bakkie,” Jarvis said.
"The man said they drove him around the Seaview and Greenbushes area before dropping him near Sixth Avenue in Walmer.”
Jarvis said the vehicle was recovered on the corner of Heugh Road and Sixth Avenue. Only the money was missing.
"Two cellphones were still in the car, with other valuables which were not taken,” he said.
"Detectives queried the hijacking when no video footage of the event was found at the Boardwalk. The man then claimed it [the hijacking] took place at the Shark [Rock] pier car park.”
Humewood police station commander Brigadier Ronald Koll said a preliminary investigation revealed the circumstances surrounding the reported hijacking were "very suspicious”, saying the statement given by the man had changed numerous times.
Koll said a false case could portray the entertainment venue as being a dangerous place, and inflate crime statistics. "Because [a] case is false it does not mean that it gets cancelled off our system – it still shows as a statistic for hijacking."
Koll said false cases were not uncommon and warned that people who swore falsely they were victims of crime would be prosecuted. The man is expected to be arrested as the investigation continues.
