Pretoria - Police in Gauteng have arrested a gang of five men suspected to be responsible for cash-in-transit robberies and a string of courier vehicle robberies.
The five men, aged between 30 and 38, were arrested on Friday at Emndeni in Soweto, according to Gauteng police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo.
He said the five were found with three rifles, a pistol, magazines loaded with ammunition, two vehicles that were reported as hijacked and a signal jammer.
“Police from the Crime Intelligence and Tactical Response Team received information about the armed suspects that were en route to commit a robbery,” Masondo said.
“The police intercepted the suspects while still in Soweto, and a search was conducted. Three rifles, a pistol, magazines, scores of ammunition and a jammer were recovered.”
Masondo said two vehicles that were found at the premises occupied by the five men - a BMW and a Hyundai H100 bakkie - were reported to be hijacked in Sandton and Linden this year.
Meanwhile, Gauteng provincial commissioner of police, Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela, has applauded his charges “for foiling yet another aggravated robbery”.
Mawela said the firearms would be sent for ballistic testing, to potentially link them to other crimes.
“I am pleased with the manner in which the police handled this information and arrested the suspects before they could commit another crime. The firearms will be sent for ballistic tests, and the suspects will be profiled to establish the crimes that they were involved in,” he said.
The five are facing charges including conspiracy to commit robbery, possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, as well as possession of suspected hijacked motor vehicles.
Last year, a 28-year-old man was arrested in Kempton Park after a joint venture of law enforcement agencies recovered two unlicensed firearms, ammunition, as well as a BMW 320d and Audi S3 that were reportedly hijacked.
At the time, Masondo said information was received about a group of suspects who were committing car hijackings and armed robberies in Gauteng, using high-performance vehicles.
“An operation was conducted in the Kempton area after information was received that the suspects were planning to commit yet another crime. Both suspects’ vehicles were spotted in the area and the team immediately intercepted them. The suspects sped off, resulting in a high-speed chase and shoot-out,” Masondo said at the time.
IOL