Johannesburg - More than 30 people were awaiting trial for involvement in cellphone shop robberies in Gauteng and the Western Cape, police said on Tuesday.
“Last year, the two provinces experienced an increase in armed robberies targeting technology service providers and shops selling cellphones,” said spokesman Brigadier Vish Naidoo.
“The ever-increasing demand for these gadgets beyond our borders in countries such as Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Tanzania has played a role in the surge in these crimes.”
He added that National Police Commissioner General Riah Phiyega instructed that a task team, comprising of detectives, the National Prosecuting Authority and cellphone service providers, be formed and investigate the robberies,
“The more than 30 suspects belonged to three different syndicates operating in Cape Town and Johannesburg and were involved in multiple armed robberies. Gauteng was hit the hardest as it suffered a staggering 58 percent of these robberies.”
Naidoo said the groups were awaiting trial in courts across the country.
ANA