The Police in Mhala arrested a man (31) who allegedly torched a Police bakkie in Thulamahashe on Saturday, 18 January 2025 at about 15h30.
A report indicates that the Police marked Toyota Double Cab bakkie was set alight in brought day light.
According to information, the Police driver and his crew were coming from a routine patrol at Thulamahashe Shopping Complex to Mhala Police Station. On their arrival, they parked the motor vehicle outside the station gate, closed the windows, locked the doors, and entered the Station.
All of a sudden, they heard some noise about the said Police bakkie being on fire.
As they came out, the said man was running from the torched motor vehicle.
The members then gave chase and caught him, a few metres from the scene.
It was during this time when the suspect was arrested and charged with malicious damage to state property.
Preliminary investigation by the Police revealed that he is a repeat offender as he committed a similar offence at the same Mhala SAPS Station in December 2023.
The Acting Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Major General (Dr) Zeph Mkhwanazi has strongly condemned this incident and expressed his disappointment. The General further urged members of the community to safeguard these essential resources that are meant to assist them. “This is very disturbing, and not so long people will be complaining that they do not get adequate service or there are no resources to serve them because of irresponsible actions like these. Let us have a sense of ownership to these resources that the state has allocated for us,” said the General.
