Dash cam footage has seemingly caught the moment a father was forced to shoot at alleged carjackers trying to hijack his vehicle with his children inside.
The unnamed man was seen firing from his driving seat as he tried to pull out of his property in Durban, South Africa on October 9.
A white vehicle had pulled up ahead of him moments before, with two men running out and beginning shooting.
The father had been speaking and laughing with his young daughter, sat in the passenger seat, and his son, who was stood by the gate, when sees the men dashing towards his car.
One of the alleged carjackers is said to have run up to the son by the gate, according to local media.
Within seconds, he twists and pulls out his own gun, firing off at least 26 bullets at the men off-camera – killing one of the alleged carjackers.
In the footage, the daughter can be seen cowering in her seat, folded forward, as the father appears to use his body to protect her.
The brother then helps the young woman out the car when the shoot-out is over.
A father shot at alleged carjackers trying to hijack his vehicle with his children inside in South Africa
The father had been speaking and laughing beforehand with his young daughter, sat in the passenger seat
A white vehicle had pulled up ahead of him moments before, with two men running out and beginning shooting.
While the men were firing at each other, the father’s car continued to roll forward until it crashed into a tree, smashing the windscreen.
Car hijacking occurs when armed robbers storm a vehicle, catching drivers off-guard, and threaten them with violence to let them steal the car.
In South Africa, vehicle hijackings have increased in recent years and are organised as a business, with the stolen vehicles often smuggled out of the country to a predetermined buyer.
The footage was first shared with Arrive Alive, a road safety organisation based in South Africa, who said that the large number of stolen firearms in the country make hijacking an easy crime to commit.
Highway Mail said that Pinetown police have opened three cases into attempted murder, attempted carjacking and an inquest following the shooting.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Paul Magwaza reportedly said: ‘The suspects opened fire, and the victim retaliated, fatally wounding one of the suspects. The remaining suspects fled the scene in their vehicle.’