Police officers deployed to monitor the volatile situation in Ladysmith managed to arrest seven suspects for public violence recently.
Several vehicles were torched after violent protests broke out in town and the surrounding areas due to the protest action against Mayor Vincent Madlala.
Police were patrolling the R103 road and clearing rubble when they received information about a group of men barricading the N11. Upon arrival, they spotted a suspicious-looking minibus next to the barricades. All the suspects were caught red-handed setting up barricades on the road.
A search was then conducted and a total of six old tyres, petrol and an axe was found inside the suspects’ vehicle. Seven suspects aged between 24 and 47 were placed under arrest for public violence. They appeared in the Ladysmith Magistrate’s Court on Friday (March 13).
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Khombinkosi Jula, welcomed the arrest of the suspects who were causing instability in Ladysmith. “I am glad the suspects were arrested. They will also be profiled to check if they are linked to the torching of vehicles in Ladysmith,” he said.
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