The Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) is currently on the lookout for a suspect who managed to escape after a kidnapping incident in Brooklyn, Pretoria over the weekend.
According to TMPD spokesperson Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba, an ongoing investigation is being conducted to apprehend another suspect involved in the kidnapping of a woman from Pretoria.
The incident unfolded when TMPD cable theft members while carrying out their regular duties on Saturday in the Brooklyn area heard a commotion on Hazelwood Street. Acting swiftly, they rushed to the scene and witnessed two men forcibly putting a woman into their vehicle.
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The TMPD members attempted to stop the vehicle, but the suspects fled, resulting in a high-speed chase.
Despite the suspects’ attempts to evade capture, the TMPD officers were able to apprehend one of them after the vehicle came to a stop. The victim, who had been kidnapped, informed the officers that she had been robbed of her cell phone and that the suspects had been pressuring her to reveal her banking details.
Further investigation revealed that the vehicle used in the crime had been reported stolen in Mamelodi, and the number plates on the vehicle did not match the license disc. In addition, the officers discovered sets of number plates, five dummy rounds, and a firearm magazine inside the vehicle.
The arrested suspect now faces charges of kidnapping, armed robbery, possession of unlawful ammunition, possession of a stolen vehicle, and possession of a firearm magazine. The TMPD is actively pursuing the other suspect involved in the incident.
In a separate incident, six individuals were apprehended in Sandton on Sunday. They have been charged with possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, as well as conspiracy to commit robbery.
According to Provincial Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo, one of the suspects was an employee at the courier company they had allegedly planned to rob.
Masondo explained that the police received information regarding the gang’s plan to carry out a robbery using a marked courier truck.
Members of the Joburg Flying Squad spotted the two vehicles involved in the crime travelling on the N1 and followed them until they reached the M1 South in Sandton.
The police then successfully stopped the vehicles, which included a branded Ford bakkie driven by an employee of the courier company and a white Toyota bakkie.
Criminologist Professor Jaco Barkhuizen has noted a concerning increase in violent crimes, particularly kidnappings, abductions, and cases of missing children, over the past three months.
This rise in more severe criminal activities is alarming and requires immediate attention from law enforcement agencies.
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