Four suspects Brighton Chauke 51, Paul Mudzingwa 47, Tshepiso Relela 32 and Percy Chauke 32 on Wednesday 8 September 2021, appeared in the Mokopane magistrate court on charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances, possession of firearm and ammunition and contravention of Immigration Act.
An escalation of robberies taking place along the N1 and R101 roads, in which criminals target motorists by placing spikes at some places on these roads and then rob them after stopping their motor vehicles to change the punctured wheels, led to the initiation of a well coordinated operation aimed at apprehending the culprits.
A team comprising the Mokopane Crime Prevention, Modimolle Dog Unit, Mokopane CIG, Detectives, Limpopo Tracking Team, Limpopo Provincial investigation unit and heritage protection group successfully tracked down the suspects allegedly responsible for these robberies.
The suspects were found in possession of spikes carried in a bag, firearm and ammunition, vehicle sponsored by the department of social development, a 303 riffle with sound suppressor, a police reflector jacket, cellphones, watches, router, all-star takkies and a laptop.
Two of the suspects were arrested on 8 September 2021, in Mabopane outside Pretoria.
One was found to be an undocumented foreign national and the other is a volunteer at the victim support centre at Rietgat SAPS. The other two were arrested on Monday 6 September 2021. More arrests are expected
The suspects were remanded in custody until 17 September 2021 for further police investigations.
