ONE SUSPECT was arrested in Sea Cow Lake at 1am on Friday after a shootout involving six suspects and several Greenwood Park police officers.
The officers were following up on information regarding a carjacking in Ladysmith where a metered taxi driver was strangled and robbed at gunpoint on Thursday night, said provincial spokesperson for SAPS, Captain Nqobile Gwala.
“The officers proceeded to the Boxwood Informal Settlement in Sea Cow Lake searching for the suspects involved and the vehicle was found abandoned. A further investigation was conducted in the same vicinity and police spotted six men lying on the ground on a footpath between the informal dwellings. After police spotted them, the men got up and began shooting at police,” said Gwala.
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After the shootout, the men fled in between the informal homes. Police pursued the suspects and arrested a 24-year-old man who was found in possession of an unlicensed firearm with 11 rounds of ammunition, said Gwala.
“The suspect was positively linked to the carjacking. The remaining suspects are still being sought by police. The suspect will appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court soon on charges of attempted murder, as well as illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition,” added Gwala.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Jula said: “Our police officers must be commended for their resilience. Operations that have been put in place to monitor the activities of criminals are bearing fruits. Our police officers are able to follow the direction used by criminals as an escape route and alert police stations along the route to intercept them.”
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