The long arm of the law caught up with an alleged stokvel robber who was found in possession of an unlawful firearm and ammunition when police officers swooped in on an informal settlement in Umzinto, recently.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Captain Nqobile Gwala, said that Qiniso Duma appeared in the Umzinto Magistrate’s Court on charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, ammunition and possession of stolen property. He was remanded in custody until 29 November.
According to Capt Gwala an intelligence operation was carried out in the Ugu District where various units in the SAPS responded to the area upon following up information about a group of armed robbers who were robbing residents.
She said: “The team went to a house at the Nkonka Informal Settlement in Umzinto where they conducted a search. A 26-year-old man was found in possession of a pistol with four rounds of ammunition. The suspect was also found in possession of R7 500 in cash and a cellphone.”
It was later established that the recovered cellphone was stolen during a house robbery in Umzinto.
Capt Gwala said: “It is alleged that on 21 November, at 9pm, two armed suspects entered the house at Thafeni in Umzinto and demanded stokvel money. The suspects took an undisclosed amount of cash before fleeing the scene on foot.”
The suspect will be profiled for his involvement in the robbery case as well as other cases reported in Umzinto and surrounding areas according to Capt Gwala.
“As the festive season is near, we are appealing to stokvel members not to keep large amounts of cash at home. People are being robbed of their cash and some are killed.
They are advised to consider safer options like depositing the money into a bank account,” Capt Gwala added.
