Balaka Police Arrest Man for Motorcycle Taxi Hijacking

A 29-year-old man has been arrested in Balaka after allegedly hijacking a motorcycle taxi driver at fake gunpoint, before spraying him with pepper spray and fleeing with his bike. Kelvin Adimaki hired the kabaza motorcycle taxi last Sunday evening, agreeing to pay K17,000 for the driver to take him to Kapandatsitsi Village. But before reaching the destination, Adimaki allegedly ordered the terrified motorcyclist to stop, before producing what turned out to be a toy gun in a bid to intimidate his victim into handing over the bike. The ordeal escalated further when the suspect reportedly sprayed pepper spray directly at the driver, before speeding off on the stolen motorcycle and leaving his victim shaken in the darkness. According to Balaka Police spokesperson Gladson M'bumpha, officers launched an intelligence-led operation that ultimately led to the recovery of the stolen bike and the arrest of Adimaki. M'bumpha confirmed that the victim had since positively identified the motorcycle, helping to secure the case against the suspect. The incident is likely to renew concerns over the safety of motorcycle taxi operators in Malawi, who frequently work alone after dark and remain particularly vulnerable to opportunistic robberies of this kind, often with little means of defending themselves against armed - or seemingly armed - attackers. Adimaki is expected to appear in court to answer charges related to the robbery, as police continue their investigation into the incident. Read the original article on Nyasa Times . AllAfrica publishes around 600 reports a day from more than 90 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals , representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica . To address comments or complaints, please Contact us . AllAfrica is a voice of, by and about Africa - aggregating, producing and distributing 600 news and information items daily from over 90 African news organizations and our own reporters to an African and global public. We operate from Cape Town, Dakar, Abuja, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington DC. Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy . We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.