Team commended for swift arrests
Members of the Brakpan Trio Task Team were commended by SAPS top brass for their rapid response to the taxi-related shooting in the Brakpan CBD last week.
The officers’ quick reaction resulted in the arrest of eight suspects and earned them a personal thank you from Gauteng police commissioner Lt Gen Deliwe de Lange and other high ranking officials.
The exemplary police work by WO Jan Roos, Const Elwin Davis and Const Jacques Vivier also led to the recovery of several heavy calibre rifles and other firearms.
Taxi violence erupted on the streets of Brakpan on Wednesday, killing four people and injuring six others.
Tsakane taxi drivers had embarked on a strike the previous day in a dispute relating to routes between Brakpan and Tsakane.
The Herald reported in last week’s edition how the morning’s deadly events unfolded when a convoy of these drivers arrived at the office of the Greater Brakpan Taxi Association at the corner of Wenden Avenue and High Street at around 9am.
Also read: Update: Early morning shooting rocks Brakpan CBD
Neighbouring residents compared the sound of the fierce gunfight that followed to that of a war zone.
The Trio Task Team responded and apprehended the suspects, reportedly six private security guards and two taxi owners, at the corner of Prince George Avenue and Voortrekker Road.
The security company is allegedly involved in other taxi-related shootings in the East Rand area.
The shooting prompted the Gauteng MEC for roads and transport, Ismail Vadi, to shut down the Tsakane Taxi Rank.
While it has since reopened, Vadi believed the action to be in the interest of public safety.
“This drastic administrative measure is necessary to protect the lives of commuters and taxi drivers,” he said.
Vadi, together with the MEC for community safety, Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane, condemned the killings in the strongest possible terms.
The suspects, who face charges of murder, attempted murder and being in possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, appeared in the Brakpan Magistrate’s Court on Friday where they were denied bail.
The case was remanded to June 1 and they remain in custody at the Boksburg Prison.
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