'Grandson has stripped Mandela's house of its dignity'

The hijacking victim whose car was found at former president Nelson Mandela's house was attacked in Johannesburg and driven around before his assailants dropped him off in Benoni.

Spokesperson for the Johannesburg metro police Xolani Fihla said the victim, who was hijacked along Louis Botha Avenue in Oaklands, was not hurt in the process and that he managed to open a hijacking case at the nearest police station.

Five people, including Nelson Mandela's grandson have since been arrested after the car, a Toyota Corolla, was traced to the former stateman's Houghton house where an unlicensed firearm was allegedly also found and confiscated.

The four are believed to be the grandson's friends.

Speaking to Sowetan, a 47-year-old caretaker living at the house said just before 6am he heard a car dropping off someone outside the yard and driving off shortly afterwards.

"I assumed it was the grandchild because he usually comes home during those hours using an Uber".

He said he then heard the gate being opened and another car coming in and the gate being closed.

Johannes Cassanga said he is not sure how long the time had passed when he heard the grandson calling his name and going to his bedroom.

"He told me that he had just been dropped off by an Uber and his friends had been following him in a Corolla, "He also said that police were downstairs looking for me."

Cassanga said when he got outside there were a lot of police officers and one of them asked if he recognised a white Corolla that was in the yard.

He told police he did not recognise it and that it was his first time seeing it.

"Police told then told me that the car had been hijacked," said Cassanga.

The grandson, three men and a woman were then arrested.

While Fihla said the woman is renting the property with her mother, Cassanga said he was seeing her for the first time that morning and that she does not live there.

Officers who were at the scene took a few things in boxes from the house, including a flat screen TV.

They also took the hijacked car.

“I am disgusted by the manner in which the grandson has turned the house of the honourable man into a criminal ground. He is disrespecting his ancestors to commit a crime in house of the father of our freedom.

“He has stripped this house of its dignity. Despite the house being quite during the day, the grandson always has his friends over for drinks or he will go out and come back late," said Cassanga, who has been working at the house for four years.

SAPS spokesperson Col Mavela Masondo said the five suspects were expected to appear at Johannesburg magistrate's court on Friday.

They face charges of the possession of a hijacked motor vehicle and possession of an unlicensed firearm.

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