Polokwane – More than 1 400 people were arrested in Limpopo over the past few days during special festive season operations which commenced on December 23 and ended on December 27, the South African Police Service (SAPS) said.
SAPS spokesperson Colonel Ronel Otto said that out of this number, 407 suspects were arrested for contact crimes which included murder, attempted murder, rape, assaults and robberies.
She said a total of 111 people were apprehended for driving under the influence of liquor, 47 undocumented persons were arrested, 28 people were nabbed for shoplifting and a further 16 for theft.
A total of 18 suspects were arrested for housebreaking and a further two suspects for stock theft.
Otto noted that during the operations members from Giyani SAPS arrested five suspects for vehicle hijacking and armed robbery.
“The suspects were targeting a vehicle that just delivered cigarettes to shops in the Giyani area,” said Otto.
She said: “The suspects forced the vehicle off the road at gunpoint and locked the three employees in the back of the vehicle before driving them to dense bushes. The suspects attempted to open the safe but did not succeed. They fled after taking four cellphones and a small amount of cash.”
The victims managed to free themselves and called the police.
Police were able to identify the vehicle from the information provided. Police stopped the vehicle and arrested the suspects, who were scheduled to appear in the Giyani Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
Vigilant police also arrested a 27-year-old suspect in Alldays for house robbery, armed robbery and vehicle theft.
Otto said the suspect was with three other suspects in a vehicle when “they offered five unsuspecting victims a lift.” The suspects stopped along the way, held the victims at gunpoint and “robbed them of all their belongings, including cash and cellphones”.
Police identified the vehicle from information victims provided, and arrested one suspect as the others fled. The vehicle turned out to be a vehicle stolen from Lethabile earlier this month. Police recovered 21 cellphones at the scene, in addition to other stolen items.
Police further discovered that the arrested suspect was “part of a group that committed a house robbery on December 23 on a farm in the Saamboubrug area”.
In a different bust, police recovered a Ford Ranger vehicle that suspects stole from a 63-year-old man after they overpowered him and “assaulted and stabbed him with a knife”.
The suspect, Martin Baloyi, was arrested and appeared in court at Makhado on Monday morning. Police were still searching for his accomplice, who was still on the run.
Otto said the cases against Baloyi were remanded to January 15, and he would remain in custody until then.
Limpopo SAPS Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant-General Fannie Masemola congratulated the members on the arrests and warned criminals that police operations would “intensify during the last few days of the year and into the new year”.
“We will not allow Limpopo to become a breeding ground for criminals from other areas who can think that they can come here and destabilise the peace and stability of this province,” he said.
He further urged members of the community to remain vigilant during this time and not to become careless as they enjoyed the last few days of 2015 in anticipation and celebration of the new year.
African News Agency
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