1. OR Tambo follow-home robbery
US and UK authorities both document criminals identifying targets at OR Tambo International Airport — often people displaying wealth or collecting rental cars — following them to their home or hotel, and robbing them there, often at gunpoint. Victims are typically watched at baggage claim or the rental desks and trailed along the R21 or N12 into the city.
Warning signs
- A vehicle that appears to shadow you from the airport onto the highway
- Strangers lingering near rental car returns or watching luggage carousels
- Being boxed in or flagged down near your destination gate
- Visible valuables, luggage, or rental-car paperwork on display
How to avoid it
- Arrange a hotel or tour-operator pickup, or use verified e-hailing rather than wandering the terminals
- Move through public airport areas quickly and keep valuables in carry-on, out of sight
- Check you are not being followed before turning into your accommodation; if suspicious, drive to a police station or petrol station
- Vary routes and keep doors locked and windows closed at all times
Sources
2. Blue-light fake police stops
Criminals posing as police fit blue lights to plain, often white, vehicles and signal motorists to pull over, then rob the occupants and steal the vehicle. UK authorities explicitly warn of this tactic in South Africa, and fake-police extortion of tourists — demands for on-the-spot 'fines' — is documented around Gauteng. Real officers may fine via paperwork, never roadside cash.
Warning signs
- An unmarked or plain private car flashing blue lights
- 'Officers' who will not show an appointment certificate
- Demand for immediate cash payment of a traffic fine
- Requests to hand over car keys, phone, or wallet for 'inspection'
How to avoid it
- If suspicious, do not stop — drive slowly to the nearest police station, petrol station, or busy public place
- Ask to see the police appointment certificate every officer must carry
- Offer to pay any fine only at a police station against written paperwork
- Call 10111 to verify or report a suspicious stop
Sources
3. E-hailing imposters and unlicensed airport taxis
Unregulated drivers pose as Uber or Bolt drivers at OR Tambo and around Gautrain stations, approaching travellers who are waiting for a booked car and claiming to be their ride. Victims who get in face overcharging, robbery, or worse. UK guidance warns passengers to book only through the app and to treat street solicitations as red flags, especially where tensions between e-hailing and metered taxi drivers have turned violent.
Warning signs
- A driver approaching you on foot saying he is your Uber before you have identified the car
- Plate, model, or driver face that does not match the app
- Offers of a 'cheaper cash price' off-app
- Pressure to leave quickly before you can verify details
How to avoid it
- Book only in-app and confirm plate, model, and driver photo before opening the door
- Wait inside the terminal or a place of safety until the car arrives; do not wait on the street
- Never accept off-app cash deals
- Use the Gautrain airport line to Sandton as a vetted alternative during the day
Sources
4. ATM skimming and withdrawal robbery
ATM and credit-card skimming is common in Johannesburg, with devices found on machines at parking kiosks, malls, and office buildings; thieves also pose as helpers at 'broken' ATMs to capture cards and PINs. People exchanging or withdrawing large sums have been followed and robbed. The US State Department additionally warns that criminals use remote jamming to block car central locking while victims withdraw cash.
Warning signs
- Anyone offering help at an ATM
- Add-on fittings or loose panels on the card reader
- People loitering and watching withdrawals
- Your car's central locking failing to engage near an ATM
How to avoid it
- Use ATMs inside bank branches, and pay parking fees in cash to avoid kiosk skimmers
- Cover the PIN pad and inspect the card slot before use
- Put cash away before leaving the bank and vary your routine
- Physically check car doors are locked — do not trust the remote click
Sources
5. Smash-and-grab at junctions
Thieves work slow-moving traffic at traffic lights, on- and off-ramps, and junctions — especially in and around the Johannesburg CBD — smashing windows to grab phones, bags, and laptops from seats. US and UK advisories both document phones snatched from hands and thefts from cars in broad daylight. During power cuts, dead traffic lights create ideal conditions.
Warning signs
- People weaving between stopped cars at intersections
- Valuables visible on seats or in a passenger's hands
- Congestion during load-shedding when signals are out
- Windows down in slow traffic
How to avoid it
- Drive with doors locked and windows up; keep bags and phones in the boot
- Leave space to see the tyres of the car ahead so you can pull out
- Avoid the CBD after dark and during load-shedding congestion
- Ask hire-car firms for smash-and-grab window film
Sources
Practical safety briefing
- Airport arrival: OR Tambo is Johannesburg's highest-risk leg: criminals have followed arrivals and robbed them at their hotels, so use the Gautrain airport line to Sandton, a hotel-arranged transfer, or in-app Uber/Bolt with plate verification — never drivers who approach you in the terminal.
- Trusted transport: The Gautrain (airport–Sandton–Rosebank–Pretoria) is the officially recommended rail option; Uber and Bolt booked in-app are the road standard. Avoid minibus taxis and street-hailed cabs; US government staff are formally barred from minibus taxis and street hails.
- Money & payments: Withdraw cash only at ATMs inside bank branches in secure areas such as Sandton or Rosebank malls, and never in busy public areas — people exchanging large sums have been followed and robbed. Cards are accepted almost everywhere; pay parking in cash to avoid kiosk skimmers.
Official travel advisories
- US State Dept — Level 2; explicitly notes that crime victims have been followed from OR Tambo Airport and robbed at their home or hotel, plus widespread ATM skimming, remote car-jamming, and e-hailing verification guidance.
- UK FCDO — Documents armed follow-home robberies from OR Tambo, blue-light fake-police carjackings, e-hailing imposters at airports, and crime around ATMs and money exchanges.
Compiled from documented reports and government advisories. How we verify scams. Last verified July 2026.