Six suspects who were wanted for a spate of armed robberies in various Durban areas were arrested in Gauteng and appeared in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court recently.
Pinetown SAPS communications officer, Captain Bongumusa Manqele, said an intelligence-driven operation conducted by Pinetown detectives led to the arrest of the suspects in Benoni, where they were appearing for other cases.
He added that the suspects will also be linked to two cases which took place in Wyebank earlier in October. “The one incident happened on 5 October, where a man was walking out of his yard in Circle Gardens, going for his morning jog, when he was accosted by five armed men travelling in a white VW Polo. They forced the man back into his yard and demanded the keys to a parked VW Polo belonging to a hiring company. At gunpoint, the suspects forced him into the bedroom and ransacked the home. They fled with with household items and cellphones,” said Capt Manqele.
Capt Manqele said the second incident, where two of the suspects invaded a home and found a woman sitting in the lounge, was also in Wyebank. “It is alleged that they instructed the woman not to make any noise before proceeding to the bedroom. They found her mother and grabbed a cellphone from her hand, also taking an LG TV and fled the scene in the same white VW Polo,” said Capt Manqele.
He said following these incidents, and many others that used the same modus operandi in Pinetown, police were tracking the wanted suspects and were able to locate them in Benoni, where they were arrested for possession of stolen property, including the vehicle that was stolen from Wyebank.
“One firearm was also recovered during the arrest and the suspects were charged for house robbery, armed robbery, and possession of an unlicensed firearm,” he added.
The suspects appeared at the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 10 November, for various charges of house robbery, armed robbery, and possession of an unlicensed firearm. The case was postponed for bail application, which will take place on 18 November.
