Fake rescuers arrested in Mihajlovac highway scam

Police have arrested two suspects for fraud on the highway near Mihajlovac, in the Smederevo region. They are suspected of disabling passing vehicles on the busy Belgrade to Nis stretch, then offering themselves as rescuers to the stranded drivers. Once the victims handed over their cars, the suspects allegedly used the chance to rob them.

In the investigation the suspects are listed under the initials S. D. (20) and A. P. (26). According to unofficial information, both are from Velika Plana. They are charged with offenses involving fraud and endangering traffic safety, and guilt has not been established by a final court ruling. Once the pre-criminal proceedings conclude, the prosecution will decide on further steps.

How did the scam work?

The method, according to police findings, was simple and therefore dangerous. The suspects reportedly picked out cars with foreign plates in a parking area and near a petrol station. On one of them, a German-registered vehicle, they allegedly tampered with the electronics until the car stalled. At that moment they would appear as good Samaritans, offering a tow and a repair, while in fact preparing a robbery.

The key piece of evidence is the phantom device found near Mihajlovac. It is an apparatus suspected of remotely jamming and blocking a vehicle. Such a gadget leaves a driver with few options. The car stops, panic rises, and a stranger offering help looks like a rescuer. That psychology, investigators believe, was what the whole scheme rested on.

Among the victims is a foreign national, reported by media to be a German citizen. He reportedly refused the suspicious offer, which helped expose the group. Foreigners on transit routes are a frequent target of such scams because they know the area less well, do not speak the language, and find it harder to check who is really helping them.

Why are transit stretches so risky?

The Belgrade to Nis motorway is one of the busiest routes in the country and a main corridor toward southern Europe. A large number of foreign vehicles, driver fatigue and night driving create conditions in which such groups more easily find a victim. A stopped car in a parking area rarely raises suspicion, and offered help looks like kindness.

Police remind drivers that in the event of a breakdown on the motorway they should move to a safe place, switch on their hazard lights and call official roadside assistance or the police, rather than hand their vehicle to strangers. Any unusual offer of help in an empty parking area is a reason for caution, not relief.

The case near Mihajlovac shows how an ordinary problem on the road can be exploited in an organized way. While the prosecution gathers evidence, the open question is how many drivers have passed through the same trap before, without ever reporting it. Would you recognize a fake rescuer in a dark parking lot beside the motorway?