Cloned police bakkie with markings, sirens and blue lights seized in Midrand. Photo: Saps
Two people have been arrested for cloning a South African Police Services (Saps) vehicle which was used to commit truck hijackings.
It is understood, members of Ekurhuleni District Crime Intelligence, Trio Task Team, Tembisa Tracing Team and Highway Patrol Unit acted on a tip-off regarding a suspicious marked Saps bakkie in the Rabie Ridge area.
Police spokesperson Colonel Mavela Masondo said offices acted on the information and discovered the cloned vehicle.
“Information was followed whereby a Mazda BT50 resembling Saps Provincial Head Office vehicle was intercepted while driving out of a plot in Midrand, Modderfontein Road.”
“The driver managed to flee the scene, but he was pursued and apprehended. Preliminary investigations revealed that the vehicle was stolen in Bedfordview in December 2022. It is believed that the vehicle was being used to commit truck hijackings,” Masondo said.
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Masondo added another individual tried to bribe police officers in releasing the suspect they had just handcuffed.
“While the police were busy at the crime scene, a man arrived and requested the members to release the suspect, offering them R5 000 as bribery. The 46-year-old was immediately placed under arrest for bribery.
Masondo said the suspects are expected to appear in court soon.
In October 2022, the Gauteng Traffic Police arrested three suspects for impersonating the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) also in Midrand.
The trio was nabbed along the R562 Road during a routine roadside check by the traffic police.
The officers noticed a white Nissan NP 300 approaching them, which they thought was suspicious.
The officers then stopped the vehicle and inspected the licence disc, which made them sceptical about its legitimacy.
According to Gauteng Traffic Police spokesperson, Sello Maremane, the officers told the occupants to exit the car so they can search it.
The suspects were in possession of two full set of EMPD uniforms, three traffic officers reflective jackets, EMPD boots, Jammers with 10 aerials and a car battery, Panga, 4 cellphones, and a replica Z 88/Beretta 9mm firearm, of which the officers confiscated together with the Nissan NP they were travelling in.
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