Here is a list of some of the most horrific crimes that stunned local residents …
Murder-Suicide at Parkview Police Station – 7 January 2015
In the early hours of 7 January this year a couple, identified as Lana Pereira Marques and Gabriel da Silva, visited the Parkview Police Station following a domestic dispute.
According to Sergeant Lloyd Ramovha of the Parkview police, the couple was calm and co-operative in filling out the necessary documents. He added that Da Silva then insisted on fetching his glasses from his car but returned with a loaded handgun and shot Pereira Marques at point-blank range before turning the gun on the police.
Rammovha said Da Silva then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.
Death of Simba – 31 January
The death of Top Billing presenter Simba Mhere sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry when he was involved in a fatal motor vehicle collision on 31 January.Mhere was travelling along William Nicol Drive in the early hours of the morning of 31 January when a vehicle collided with his car at the highway interchange. He was driving with friend Kady Shay O’Bryan and his father.Mhere and O’Bryan died on the scene. The motorist involved in Mhere’sdeath appeared at the Randburg Magistrates’ Court on a charge of culpable homicide.
Bryanston Jewellery store robbery – 13 February 2015
On 13 February a video was released by Andreas Salver Jewellery store in Bryanston of a traumatic robbery that took place on the morning of 11 February.Store owner Andreas Salver said two people entered his store under the guise of an engaged couple. As the male suspect made his way to the counter, the woman kept the door open for four other suspects who entered the store.He added that as one of his employees was making his way back from the toilet, one of the suspects pointed a gun at the staff member who shouted, “We’re being robbed.”Salver said the robbers locked all the staff in the storage room before fleeing with an undisclosed amount of items.
Taxi Violence on William Nicol Drive – 25 February 2015
The year saw a staggering amount of taxi violence including a murder in the CBD at the Berea taxi rank, and a taxi that was set alight in Midrand.On 25 February, commuters on William Nicol Drive were stunned to witness the body of a taxi driver who was run over by a rival driver.The deceased had allegedly stabbed a taxi driver from another association before being knocked down by the taxi after running across William Nicol Drive near Hyde Park Corner.
Mandrax lab busted in Sandhurst – 18 September 2015
After months of investigation, the Hawks raided a drug lab at a Sandhurst property where they recovered R20 million worth of methaqualone which is used in the production of mandrax.
Spokesperson for the Hawks, Robert Netshiunda, said the Hawks had been monitoring the property for a few months on suspicions that a syndicate was involved in the alleged drug lab.
He added that the Hawks believed the syndicate operated in Dobsonville, Pretoria and Johannesburg, and the drugs were transported to Cape Town for sale.
One 28-year-old suspect was arrested while another escaped.
