Cape Town – The City’s law enforcement officers swiftly pounced on two suspects alleged to have hijacked a small goods delivery truck on Monday.
At about 2.20pm, the officers were conducting a vehicle checkpoint on Jakes Gerwel Drive when members of the public alerted them to a hijacking incident minutes after it occurred.
The officers gave chase in the direction and identified the white Hyundai.
According to mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith, one of the suspects attempted to evade arrest by running. However, the officers caught up with him, and he was arrested.
The suspect was also allegedly found in possession of a prohibited firearm and 15 rounds of ammunition, Smith said.
“Officers managed to arrest both suspects, who were handed over at Elsies River SAPS.
“The vehicle was recovered without any further incident and all goods retrieved.
“With a sharp increase of hijackings and hijackings of goods vehicles as indicated in the most recent crime statistics, the City is now exploring additional ways to combat this crime,” said Smith.
“Additional training and technology is also to be explored for the soon-to-be-launched highway patrol unit to copy the same best practice procedure for combating hijacking as used within the USA,” said Smith.
Last week, Police Minister Bheki Cele said 16 trucks worth more than R40 million were hijacked in the past five months in the Western Cape.
Cape Times