Caron Whateley, dumped in the dead of night near Inanda, crawled under a bush and picked bundles of grass to keep warm.
|||Durban - Shivering uncontrollably, hijacked Westville woman Caron Whateley, dumped in the dead of night on the outskirts of Emachobeni, near Inanda, crawled under a bush and picked bundles of grass to throw over herself as cover.
Grateful to be alive and overwhelmed by the love and concern on Facebook, Whateley last night calmly recounted her terrifying ordeal as a way of saying thank you to all those who helped her.
She recounted how with a bright moon over the township, she decided that it would be better to hide in the bush until first light, rather than risk falling into an even worse situation.
Just a few hours earlier, on Thursday night, 43-year-old Whateley, a real estate agent, along with some of her close friends had been having dinner at popular local watering hole, Waxy O’Connors in central Westville, before heading home for the night.
“I locked the car and went to manually close and lock the gate and started walking back toward the house. As I approached the house, I saw four men come out from behind the wall and everything started going in slow motion,” recalled Whateley last night.
She had been bundled into her car, a Toyota Yaris, and her attackers demanded money.
A calm Whateley told them to use the bank card belonging to her partner, David Clements, who was away in Joburg at the time.
“I knew that when they drew money from this account, David would see where the money was being drawn from and realise I was in danger,” said Whateley.
During what seemed like hours, Whateley said that the men, five of them, did not shout, swear or treat her disrespectfully.
“I’m certainly not condoning their actions, but I am so grateful for the way that they treated me,” she said.
When she had been dumped in Inanda, Whateley said that she was terrified of finding herself in a more dangerous situation, and chose to stay hidden in bushes until the morning.
Meanwhile, a massive search had been triggered on social networking sites, with private investigators, the metro police, police, the Kloof Community Policing Forum, and members of the public searching for her.
When she heard children yesterday morning near her hiding spot, she knew that this was her way to find help.
Pastor Bigboy Mthethwa, 55, a bishop at the Christ Church of God in Inanda and a member of the local community policing forum, was on his daily morning drive to pick up pre-schoolers for the crèche he runs at home with his wife Janet, when he found Whateley, crying and trembling, with her arms clutched tightly around her.
“I was surprised to see a white person, out here, alone in the early morning,” he said.
When he received no response to calls for help from the police, he took Whateley to his home, about 5km away.
Mthethwa contacted Whateley’s family, and gave Whateley’s sister and brother-in-law directions to his home.
Mthethwa said Whateley kept asking “am I safe here” while his wife prepared the heater, and made porridge and coffee for her.
Mthethwa said that Whateley then began to talk comfortably and even offered to wash the dishes.
When police and her family arrived to collect her, Mthethwa said Whateley repeatedly hugged and thanked them.
He said that Whateley’s mother, who was in Mozambique at the time, spoke to Mthethwa and sent an SMS thanking him for saving her daughter.
“Thank you very much for looking after my precious child. God bless you all and may the Lord meet your every need always,” the message read.
“She is such a strong woman, we’re so thankful that she was unharmed,” said Mthethwa.
Colonel Jay Naicker said: “The stolen vehicle was recovered in KwaDabeka by the metro police, and two suspects were seen fleeing from it. The vehicle was taken to the pound and arrangements for inspection for possible fingerprints have been made.
“No arrests have been made and the investigation continues.”
Whateley’s big thank you
When you read this message, you will never comprehend how grateful I am to be alive and unharmed, and able to write this!!!
I am completely overwhelmed by the sheer volume of support, both from the authorities and caring individuals who involved themselves, jeopardising their own safety to assist in the search for me, and hold me in thought and prayer.
The competence and speed with which Brad Nathanson, the metro police, SAPS, the Kloof Community Policing Forum, and everyone else – including family and businessmen who don’t even know me – worked, astounds me.
It was only minutes after I was let out of the car before I started seeing the police, neighbourhood watch and other vehicles with search lights infiltrating the valley. They were too far away for me to get to them, but I knew that they were there, and it gave me such comfort.
Independent on Saturday