Police in South Africa said on Monday they had arrested nearly two dozen people after a number of incidents of violence and truck blockades aimed at protesting against foreign drivers.
Two men, believed to be part of a gang that would rob people at gunpoint, were shot dead on Friday morning after a gun battle with police.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Jay Naicker said that police officers from Ntambanana near Empangeni launched an operation to hunt down a notorious gang of armed robbers that have been terrorising residents in the area .
He said it is alleged that the gang would rob people of their belongings at gunpoint and flee with their valuables.
A mask believed to have been worn by the robbers when they robbed people They are also responsible for a number of murders in the area.
Last night at 23:30, detectives from the Provincial Organised Crime Investigations, Crime Intelligence, National Intervention Unit and Metro police proceeded to Wentworth and Montclair to execute a search warrant and a warrant of arrest.
The team proceeded to Pirie Road in Wentworth where a search was conducted at the premises. Upon searching the house, police found a vehicle hidden in the garage with bullet holes and blood stains. No one was in the house and the vehicle was impounded by police for further investigation. The recovered vehicle is positively linked to a drive-by shooting that was perpetrated in Woodville Road in Wentworth this month.
Yesterday morning, 27 January 2021 at 06:00, an operation by the Vryheid Task Team was carried out at Weenen where the team was following up information regarding suspects involved in a case of theft of vehicle.
It is alleged that on 26 November 2020, the complainant parked his vehicle in his yard at Bhekezulu area in Vryheid, securely locked the gate before he went to sleep. The following morning, he noticed that his taxi was nowhere to be seen and the gate was broken. A case of theft of motor vehicle was opened for investigation at Vryheid SAPS.
The team proceeded to Nhliwe area in Weenen where a stolen bakkie was found. The investigation revealed that the bakkie was stolen at Alberton in Gauteng. Inside the suspect’s workshop, the police found pieces of the stolen taxi, pieces of a vehicle that was hijacked in Colenso as well as pieces of other vehicles. A total of seven suspects aged between 30 and 68 were placed under arrest.