On the night of 12 February 2021, PE K9 unit members with their canine buddies arrested an alleged drug dealer and a copper cable thief in separate incidents in Nelson Mandela Bay metro.
At about 20:30, in an intelligence driven operation, K9 members arrested a 55-year-old man at his house in Independent Street in Kleinskool. A search warrant was executed at the house and the suspect was found with a bucket in his hand filled with dagga. A total of 1 015 small ziplock packets of dagga; 3,026kg of loose and compressed dagga; 27 dagga rolls and cash were seized. The estimated street value of the dagga is R18 500.
The suspect was detained on a charge of dealing in dagga and will appear in the Port Elizabeth magistrates’ court on Monday, 15 February 2021.
The theft of copper cables is an ongoing problem across Nelson Mandela Metro however two men were surprised when the K9 unit members and their dog Bentley spotted them stealing cables from the lamp poles in Old Uitenhage Road in Algoa Park during the early hours of 13 February 2021.
At about 02:00, the members were on patrol in an area which is a hotspot for copper cable theft when they noticed the two males busy fiddling with the lamp poles and pushing it over a fence. As they stopped the vehicle the men ran in different directions. The K9 handler and his dog, Bentley pursued after them in dense bushes.
Bentley apprehended a 29-year-old suspect who was armed with a long kitchen knife. The second suspect managed to flee. A hacksaw and a pair of pliers were confiscated.
The suspect was detained under the Criminal Matters Amendment Act – damage to essential infrastructure and he will appear in the New Brighton magistrates’ court on Monday, 15 February 2021.
