Family of slain Bolt driver Isaac Satlat urges unity, rejects xenophobia narrative

As a suspect prepares to stand before the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court, the family of slain Bolt driver Isaac Satlat has made one thing clear: they do not believe he was killed because he was Nigerian.

In the days since the 22-year-old was brutally murdered in Pretoria West, public anger has spilled across social media. A disturbing video of the attack, widely condemned and repeatedly reshared, intensified the outrage. But alongside grief came speculation. Some online voices quickly framed the killing as another chapter in South Africa’s long and painful history of xenophobic violence.

Now, the family is pushing back.

The uncle of an e-hailing driver, who was killed in Pretoria West this week, is pleading for assistance to return his nephew’s body home to Nigeria. 22-year-old Isaac David Satlat was strangled to death by two passengers who had requested the e-hailing service. Tune in to #eNCA,… pic.twitter.com/iUTrZjZdFs

eNCA (@eNCA) February 15, 2026

“This was crime, not xenophobia”

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, family spokesperson and activist Solomon Ashoms said they had deliberate conversations about how the tragedy should be understood.

After discussing the matter with Isaac’s father, the family reached a firm conclusion: this was not a targeted, nationality-driven attack.

According to Ashoms, the family believes it was a criminal act a hijacking that escalated into murder something that could have happened to anyone working as an e-hailing driver, regardless of nationality.

More importantly, Isaac’s father has reportedly asked that the case not be turned into a “Nigeria versus South Africa” narrative.

In a country where tensions between locals and foreign nationals have at times boiled over into violence, that appeal carries weight.

National Importance 📍 Please Share.

Someone Somewhere knows these Criminals. They attacked an e-hailing driver until he passed out and must be held accountable. pic.twitter.com/vqKidQSYs3

Black-Jesus💧 (@KingMntungwa) February 13, 2026

A father’s unimaginable moment

While public debate rages online, the family is living a private nightmare.

Ashoms described the devastating moment Isaac’s father had to identify his son’s body at a funeral parlour. The shock was so severe that his blood pressure reportedly spiked dangerously high, and he had to be rushed to a medical facility.

It’s a reminder that behind viral videos and trending hashtags are real families, facing grief that no headline can fully capture.

The family has also confirmed that Isaac’s father has not watched the graphic footage circulating online and does not intend to.

Police have previously warned the public against sharing the video, saying it could retraumatise loved ones and potentially interfere with the investigation.

Who Isaac was beyond the headlines

In the rush of breaking news, it’s easy for victims to become defined by the crime.

But those close to Isaac paint a fuller picture.

He was creative. He loved music. He had an interest in modelling. Most of all, he was deeply connected to his church community.

At 22, he was building a life like many young people navigating the pressures of adulthood in Gauteng’s gig economy. E-hailing work, while flexible, comes with risks. Drivers often operate alone, responding to ride requests from strangers in areas known for hijackings and opportunistic crime.

Isaac was one of thousands trying to earn a living this way.

The wider context: crime, fear and fast conclusions

Pretoria West, like many parts of Gauteng, has seen incidents involving e-hailing drivers before. Hijackings targeting ride-hailing operators are not new, and safety concerns within the sector have been raised repeatedly over the years.

Yet South Africa also carries a difficult history of xenophobic violence from the 2008 attacks to sporadic flare-ups in townships and inner-city areas. That history means that when a foreign national is killed, many people understandably question motive.

The family’s position adds a crucial layer of nuance: not every crime involving a foreign national is automatically xenophobic. Sometimes, they argue, it is simply criminality brutal and senseless, but not politically or ethnically motivated.

That distinction matters in a country already grappling with deep social divisions.

The legal process ahead

IOL previously reported that a female suspect is expected to appear in the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court facing charges of murder and hijacking. Police have indicated that further arrests are imminent as investigations continue.

For now, the case remains in the hands of law enforcement and the courts.

A plea for restraint

As the story continues to unfold, Isaac’s family is asking the public for something simple: do not turn their loss into a battleground.

In a time when social media can amplify anger within minutes, their call is for restraint and for unity rather than division.

Isaac Satlat was a son, a brother, a young man with dreams. However the courts ultimately rule, his family hopes his name will not be used to deepen fractures between communities who, in reality, share the same daily struggle against crime.

And in Gauteng today, that struggle is one many know all too well.