Man who held up Menlyn Maine demanding R10m planted a fake bomb

The man arrested at Menlyn Maine after a bomb threat at an Absa bank had planted a fake bomb, police have confirmed.

Police spokesperson Captain Colette Weilbach told The Citizen the centre had now been declared safe following this discovery.

“The 50-year-old suspect from Garsfontein will face an additional charge of attempted bank robbery,” Weilbach said.

The alleged perpetrator demanded R10 million, reportedly threatening to detonate a bomb he claimed he had planted at a nearby location if he didn’t receive it.

The complex was evacuated as a result.

Weilbach confirmed the incident in a statement earlier on Tuesday.

“The South African Police Service (SAPS) Brooklyn arrested a man after he made an alleged bomb threat at a shopping centre in the East of Pretoria.

“On Tuesday, 17 September 2019 at around 11.15am, an unknown man in his fifties entered a bank at the Menlyn Maine Shopping Centre. He handed a note over to the bank teller who assisted him. The note contained a threat to say that there is a bomb planted inside the bank.

“The security immediately reacted and evacuated the whole shopping centre. The SAPS responded and arrested the man inside the bank. A firearm was confiscated.

“The SAPS bomb disposal and K9 units were called out and are still on the scene to inspect a device that was found. The shopping centre is not declared as safe yet.

“The man will be charged with contravention of the Explosive Act No 26 of 1956 for making a false threat. He will appear in the Hatfield Community Court soon,” the statement concludes.

(Compiled by Daniel Friedman.)

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.