WITH the help of a quick-thinking truck driver, Durban Central SAPS have apprehended and charged a 32-year-old man who was caught attempting to rob a driver at knifepoint on the streets of Durban Central early yesterday afternoon.
According to Durban Central SAPS Captain Muzi Maphumulo, police officers were patrolling the Durban Central Business District when they received a tip about a smash-and-grab incident. “On August 10, at about 13:00, police officers from Durban Central’s motorbike unit were patrolling in the hotspot areas of the Durban CBD when they responded to a complaint of a smash-and-grab incident via radio control on Victoria Embankment Street,” said Maphumulo.
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“It is alleged by the complainant that she was driving her vehicle by Margaret Mncadi Avenue on the M4 off-ramp by the robot. Whilst stationary at the robot, she was approached by a suspect who, at knifepoint, damaged her front passenger window and forced his body inside the vehicle to take the cellphone of the person in the passenger seat,” said the police captain.
Luckily, another driver who witnessed the robbery decided to intervene. “The truck driver who saw what was happening moved his truck against the victim’s vehicle to block the suspect. The motorbike unit swiftly responded and arrested one suspect aged thirty-two for robbery and for the possession of a dangerous weapon.”
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Maphumulo says that the stolen cellphone and knife were recovered from the suspect.
“The suspect was arrested and will be charged for robbery and possession of a dangerous weapon, and is expected to appear before the Durban Magistrate’s Court on 12 August 2022,” he concluded.
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