Three men were arrested for being in possession of a hijacked vehicle near the intersection of Francis and Kenmere streets in Yeoville on Friday, April 3.
The Yeoville SAPS communications officer, Constable Thabo Malatji, said the vehicle was reported as stolen in the Jeppe SAPS policing precinct earlier.
“Information was sent through via radio about the hijacked vehicle. As the officers were patrolling, they spotted a car that fitted the description of the stolen vehicle and stopped it. It was later confirmed that it was the same car the SAPS was looking for,” said Const Malatji.
He added that the suspects were arrested and linked to the earlier hijacking.
Const Malatji said the men were not yet linked to any other crimes.
The Express’ sister paper, the Bedfordview and Edenvale News, published a story where Const Malatji said there was an increasing number of vehicles stolen from other police precincts and subsequently recovered in the Yeoville SAPS precinct.
“These cars are found at different shopping centres and blocks of flats’ parking lots. The cars are found locked, as if the owner is around. We are investigating if there is a syndicate using our area as a ‘cool off’ place for stolen vehicles. We also want to check if the trackers in those cars are working,” said Const Malatji.
He added that the SAPS is working with businesses in the area to beef up security.
He urged the community to come forward with information.
“We urged the community to come forward with information that can help us to arrest those people using our area for criminal activities,” he said.
Anyone with information that can lead to the arrest of these suspects can SMS Crime Line on 32211 or call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
Information can also be reported to the Yeoville SAPS.
