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SA singer mugged and stabbed while stuck in traffic during loadshedding



Cape Town – Charlie Smidt, frontman for Afrikaans band Beeskraal, was robbed and stabbed with a knife while stuck in peak hour traffic in Pretoria late on Thursday.

Charlie told Channel24 that he was stuck in traffic due to loadshedding in Beatrix street right across from the Sunnyside shopping centre when it happened.

"Two guys just suddenly appeared by my window on my driver’s side. I thought they were street hawkers, but then they tried to open my car doors, which were locked", Charlie explains.

After they couldn’t get into the car, the men reached through the small space of the open window with their arms and put a knife against Charlie’s head. "They asked me to hand them my cellphone which was on the seat between my legs. They threatened to kill me. As I gave them the phone they stabbed me in the arm," says Charlie.

Charlie posted a pic of his wound on his Facebook page:

Charlie says he felt a "super calmness" come over him during the attack, but that he was numb from the shock and just focused on preventing them from stabbing him in the face or neck.

After the attack, Charlie went to a private hospital where he had to wait three hours to get treated. "Although my stab wound wasn't life threatening I was bleeding a lot. We waited for 3 hours before someone helped us. There were about 20 -30 people in the reception area with only one doctor on duty. Lots of nurses and staff were standing around kidding around and paying no attention to the patients."

Charlie also told Channel24 that there are things that can be done to prevent this from happening.

"Keep windows and doors locked at all time, be aware of any movement around your vehicle at all times, hide all electronic devices and don't make any jewellery, money or anything of value visible through the car windows. Try not to drive alone especially at night and especially if you’re a woman."

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