At least three armed thieves hijacked a cargo truck in Brazil that was transporting a shipment of unidentified pharmaceuticals estimated to be worth 1.3 million reais ($326,752). According to the driver, the three thieves intercepted his cargo truck on the BR-050 highway near Uberaba, Minas Gerais and forced him from his vehicle. The thieves placed a hood on the driver and placed him into their passenger vehicle while one of the criminals took control of the cargo truck and shipment of pharmaceuticals.
The thieves, with the cargo truck driver still held hostage, drove to an area on the nearby BR-262 highway, where they stopped to offload the cargo. A passerby saw the group on the side of the road and, thinking that they were having mechanical problems, stopped to help. The thieves then took the passerby hostage, locking him and the cargo truck driver in a vehicle and abandoning the two in the area of Jubai, located south of Uberaba, and fled. Police are continuing to search for the thieves and stolen pharmaceuticals.