South Africa is still reeling after the murder of 22-year-old Bolt driver Isaac Satlat in Pretoria, captured in widely shared dashcam footage.
The footage, which went viral on social media on Friday, showed a female suspect strangling Satlat, allegedly with the help of a male suspect. The brutal attack had occurred about a week before, when the suspects allegedly initially posed as passengers. They then turned on Satlat, strangling him to death before taking charge of the vehicle. Satlat’s body and the hijacked car were discovered in Atteridgeville on the same day.
By Saturday, Dikeledi Mphela handed herself over to the police in Atteridgeville. She appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Monday, together with the other suspects, Goitsione Machidi and McClaren Mushwana. A fourth suspect appeared separately, and the case was postponed to 23 February.
Satlat was just days away from celebrating his 23rd birthday. He had been working as a Bolt driver to support himself while completing an internship.
And that’s where this story gets bigger than one horrific crime.
His death has once again brought the spotlight onto safety in the e-hailing industry. Drivers have long raised concerns about attacks and hijackings, warning that existing protections are not enough.
This comes as the National Land Transport Amendment regulations, introduced in September 2025, require all e-hailing platforms, including Uber and Bolt, to register with authorities. The rules mandate proper vehicle branding, panic buttons, and licensing for both drivers and platforms.
The intention was to formalise and safeguard the sector. Yet, with the compliance deadline looming, reports indicate major platforms have not completed the registration process.
Members of the E-hailing Federation of South Africa protested outside court during the suspects’ first appearance, calling on platforms to strengthen verification processes for app users.
For years, the conversation around e-hailing safety has centred on passengers. Satlat’s murder is a stark reminder that drivers, too, remain vulnerable, and that regulation without enforcement offers little comfort.
Whether platforms act decisively now may determine the future stability of South Africa’s e-hailing industry.
