Residents of Laudium are still reeling in shock, after news of a 9-year-old boy being kidnapped from a Laudium home went viral on social media (see Laudium Sun Facebook Page).
This follows the kidnapping of Noyan Safari, a resident of Waterfall in Midrand, who is believed to have been kidnapped by three to four unknown individuals, last Sunday (Jan 19) at around 7pm from a home on Mendhi Street, Laudium. Noyan’s father, Najib Safari, originally from Afghanistan, was visiting family members on Mendhi Street in Laudium with his wife and son. After spending some time with family and friends from the afternoon, Najib left his wife and Noyan at the Mendhi Street
home, and then went out with a relative who lives at the Mendhi Str house.
Elyas Hussain, who lives at the Mendhi Str house and is the cousin of the kidnapped boy, Noyan Safari, told the Laudium Sun, “We had a family gathering on Sunday and invited Noyan and his family, as we often host small functions on alternate weekends. At the time of the kidnapping, which was in the evening, there were four children playing inside the yard, and the gate was locked. While they were playing, I was inside the house with other relatives. Suddenly, one of my cousins, who was playing outside, came running, crying, and told us that Noyan had been taken away by some unknown people.” Elyas added, “I suspect that a Pakistani individual may be involved in this kidnapping. According to my cousin, who was playing outside, the man who grabbed Noyan had brown skin, curly hair, and was tall. Noyan has low blood sugar, and his condition is not good. I urge the kidnappers to release him immediately,” Elyas said.
Maisam Hussain, who also lives at the Mendhi Str house and also a cousin of Noyan, told the Laudium Sun, “I was inside the house with relatives when one of the children who were playing outside ran inside the house and told us that Noyan had been grabbed by two man from outside the gate. At first, we thought the child might be imagining and that Noyan might have gone out or been invited by a neighbour. But after searching for him all over, we realised that he had been kidnapped and we immediately went to the Laudium Police Station to report the child missing.”
A resident from Mendhi Str, Darie Chinsamy, told the Laudium Sun, “Crime in Laudium is concerning, with incidents happening every day, despite the introduction of the so-called gating system. I don’t know much about the kidnapping, but it’s sad to hear that it happened on our street.”
The security guard from Khan’s Security, Donald Makola, who was on duty at the time of the kidnapping at the community installed street security gate, told the Laudium Sun, “I saw the Nissan car when it entered our street. I thought they might have been invited to the function at the victim’s house. The car was parked for a long time, but I didn’t think much of it because the people looked like they might be related to the family. However, after a few minutes after the car went out again, I saw the mother coming out of the house crying about her son been taken away. By that time the car had already driven away from Mendhi Street.”
According to CCTV footage and information provided by one of Noyan’s cousins, there were three or four men in a gold-coloured Nissan Tida. They pulled into the driveway, and two of the occupants approached the gate where Noyan was playing. One of them called out to Noyan, became friendly with him, and asked him to open the gate. When Noyan opened the gate from inside, the two men grabbed him and shoved him into the Nissan Tiida, then speedily drove away, without being stopped at the recently erected street security gates.
