Cape Town - A female police officer has been arrested for being the getaway driver for a gang of smash and grab criminals.
On Tuesday, April 23, at 10.45pm, two men aged 26 were arrested for attempted housebreaking in Cape Town Central at a car dealership, said police liaison officer Lieutenant Colonel André Traut.
The arrest was made with the help of the City of Cape Town’s closed circuit television system.
A third suspect, driving a Toyota Yaris, was arrested the next day.
The suspect, a 30-year-old female who is a suspended police officer, was also detained for attempted housebreaking for her part in the crime.
The suspended officer was identified by metro police members as the same person who was illegally parked in front of a building on the corner of Hans Strydom and Loop streets, Traut said. This was where the accused was earlier monitored by the City of Cape Town’s closed circuit television unit. At that time the officers obtained the driver’s full details which matched the description of the car that drove away from the scene of the crime.
The suspects appeared in court on Friday, April 26, and were denied bail. They were due to make another court appearance next month.
“Cape Town Central police would like to warn business owners in the city centre of a new trend of burglaries, following the arrest of three suspects during last week,” Traut said.
“The modus operandi of the suspects was to approach (the premises of) a business, smash a window and grab whatever was of value,” he added
Cape Argus