'I thought it was the end': Delft father recounts harrowing experience of being robbed at gunpoint during e-hailing ride
Delft dad Randall Willemse sustained head injuries requiring 10 stitches, while her 11-year-old daughter suffered cuts to her hand. Others also sustained minor injuries.
Image: Supplied
Randall Williams feared for his life and his children's during an alleged armed robbery near the R300 on Saturday.
And as the two gun-wielding thugs were robbing him of the R700 he had on him, all he could think about was “what would happen to me or the baby as she was in my arms, because they could have killed us”.
Williams and his two daughters, a 10-month-old baby girl and an 11-year-old, booked an e-hailing cab from his mother’s place in Manenberg back to their home in Delft.
But it was a nightmare from start to finish, as he initially requested the ride around 5pm on Saturday, but apparently struggled for more than two hours to get a driver to accept his request.
His wife then requested a ride on her side and within 30 minutes of her request, they were on their way home.
Willemse recalled: “As we were travelling, we approached the turn-off near the R300 and the car got stuck.
“Law enforcement officers were standing about 400 meters away from where we were and I told the driver that this a dangerous place to stand - especially with all the smash and grabs going on.
“I told him let’s try to jump start this car and try to reverse it back to the robot, thinking it would be safer there and I would go to the officers and ask them for help which they would because there is a baby here.
“Instead of doing that, he put the car in first gear and said I musn’t worry.”
The e-hailing driver then logged an emergency case on his app, trying to calm the pa down.
A good Samaritan then pushed the car to give them a jump start.
But that’s when things went south.
Willemse explained: “Just over 1km from where he started to push, the car switched off for good and then we were stranded.
“Five minutes later, we still didn’t hear from the help the driver requested and that’s when we got robbed.
“I quickly put my phone on silent, faced down under the seat and shared my location with my wife and brother-in-law.
“They [the thugs] then held us at gunpoint. I told the driver ‘just open the doors, just open whatever you need to open because I need to think of my children here’, because these two coloured guys said ‘if you are not going to open here then we are going to shoot the stuff open’.
“They stole R700 that I had on me, and all I thought was what would happen to me or the baby as she was in my arms, because they could have killed us.”
After the robbers left, 10 minutes later they came back and took the driver’s radio out of the vehicle.
Eventually, his brother-in-law and his wife, who got a lift with their neighbour’s bakkie, arrived.
Willemse, his wife and kids travelled in the bakkie and as their mind eased after being rescued, they were involved in an accident.
He explained: “Our neighbour then towed the driver’s car over a nearby bridge just so he can be safe. Then a car just came straight into us and knocked the bakkie right off, everyone in the bakkie was knocked out.
“We were standing there looking for my children and as I picked them up, there was just blood dripping on my face and my eldest daughter was complaining about her hand that had a hole in it.”
Willemse sustained head injuries requiring 10 stitches, while his 11-year-old daughter suffered cuts to her hand.
Police spokesperson Constable Ndakhe Gwala confirmed the accident, saying: "Lentegeur police registered a case of Reckless and Negligent driving, following an accident that occurred at the corner of Swartklip and Highlands Drive in Montclair on Saturday May 2, 2026 at about 10.50pm.
"According to reports, two vehicles collided and drivers sustained slight injuries while the passengers on both vehicles were severely injured.
"An adult male and female were transported to a hospital where the female victim succumbed to her injuries. The charge will be changed to culpable homicide. The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation."