Four men are expected to appear in the Malelane Magistrate’s Court on Monday, in connection with a daring cash-in-transit heist which happened in Mpumalanga, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (known as the Hawks) said.
On Friday, an armoured Fidelity vehicle was travelling from Malelane, towards Tonga when it came under attack from armed assailants.
“Approximately 15 kilometres from the N4, the armoured vehicle was rammed by a C-Class Mercedes Benz. The armoured vehicle lost control and overturned. It was then bombed, and approximately R8,000 in coins were stolen,” spokesperson for the Hawks in Mpumalanga, Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi narrated.
The coins were destined for a business operating in Tonga.
The Hawks said after stealing the money, the robbers fled the scene, heading in the direction of Tonga.
A law enforcement team comprising of different police units and private security companies launched a manhunt for the robbers.
“The two vehicles which were used during the cash-in-transit robbery were recovered at a house in Schoemansdal and four suspects were arrested. Information is being followed and further successes are expected,” said Sekgotodi.
Meanwhile, provincial head of the Hawks in Mpumalanga, Major General Nicholas Gerber has conveyed gratitude to the multi-disciplinary team tasked with preventing and probing cash-in-transit heists across the province.
The team consists of the Hawks provincial task team, crime intelligence members, the national intervention unit, the tactical response team, and private security companies.
“The Hawks are not alone in this fight. We are literary squeezing the space where these suspects are operating,” Gerber said.
“We have made serious impact over the past couple of weeks. We will not rest. This is a collaborative effort and the strategy is bearing excellent results in a short space of time.”
IOL