‘Blue-light hijackers’ to appear in Tembisa court

Three “blue-light hijackers” aged between 30 and 40 are expected to appear in the Tembisa Magistrate’s Court on Monday following their arrest last Friday.

The three suspects were allegedly involved in business robberies, as well as truck hijackings and robberies on the R21 freeway.

They are accused of being in possession of illegal firearms, live ammunition and police uniform while investigations continue to link them to more crimes.

Ekurhuleni police on Friday received a tip-off relating to the whereabouts of the suspects, which led to the arrest of the three men.

According to police spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters, during the arrests police seized two firearms, one of them illegal, live ammunition and South African Police Service (Saps) uniforms and paraphernalia.

“Both firearms will be taken in for ballistic testing in anticipation of possible linkage to previous serious and violent crimes.

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“A white VW Polo was also seized at one of the addresses for further investigation to establish whether the vehicle could have been used during the commission of the said hijackings and robberies,” said Peters.

The police have since been able to link one of the suspects to a series of serious and violent crimes, including several murder cases and armed robberies committed between 2017 and 2020 in Brakpan, Kwa-Thema, and Tsakane, on which he was arrested and absconded bail, Peters explained.

Gauteng police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela expressed gratitude over the strengthened relations between police and communities, who continue to play a pivotal role in the fight against crime by providing valuable tip-offs.

“The investigators must now work closely with the prosecutors to ensure that no bail is granted to these suspects. These suspects are proof that most of the serious and violent crime in Gauteng is committed by repeat offenders who are under the illusion that they can get away with murder,” Mawela said.

Peters said that the investigation had also confirmed that the three suspects are due back in court on 22 February for a previous business robbery case in Springs last August.

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