The Provincial Head Major General Mboiki Obed Ngwenya expressed his delight and lauded the swift fruitful joint effort by the Interim Cash-In–Transit (CIT) task team of the Hawks with provincial Tactical Response Team (TRT) in locating the CIT suspects within a few hours of the incident on 29 July 2024.
It is alleged that on 29 July 2024 around 06:00 the SBV armoured vehicle (AV) from East London en route to Stutterheim was ambushed on the N6 near Macleantown, by a number of suspects in a fleet of vehicles. It is further alleged that during the incident three guards were injured as the AV landed on its side during the attack. An SBV escort vehicle was also allegedly shot at and a backup to the scene was called.
The suspects allegedly fled the scene with an undisclosed amount of money and abandoned three vehicles from their fleet which were later circulated and discovered to have been reported stolen in other provinces. Explosives were also recovered on the scene.
A few hours later information was received which led the team to the location in a homestead of Keiskammahoek. The team was received with a hail of bullets from the assailants in the suspicious homestead and the police were forced to retaliate with the same force which ended with five (5) of the assailants fatally wounded.
Cash in original money bags,3 xAK 47 riffles, 1x R1 riffle, 4 x R5 riffles, 17 magazines with a large number of live rounds of ammunition were recovered and seized in the household. One 58-year-old suspect who happened to be the owner of the homestead was arrested and will appear in King William’s Town Magistrate’s court soon.
A follow-up investigation ensued which led to the arrest of three suspects driving in a suspicious Porsche vehicle with GP registration between Queenstown and Cradock. A quick roadblock was set up by Gqeberha Serious Organised Crime Investigation of the Hawks jointly with Cradock SAPS K9 (Dog Unit), Cradock Visible Police (Vispol), Cradock Public Order Police (POP) and Local Criminal Record Centre (LCRC) members outside Tarkastad where the suspicious vehicle failed to stop.
The chase ensued and conventional methods were used to bring it to a halt.
Three suspects aged between 44 and 48 were arrested. Cash in stacks of R100 and R200 notes in original cash bags, four burner cellphones and a Porsche Cayenne vehicle were seized during the arrest. On circulation the Porsche was found to be reported stolen in Gauteng.
The three suspects will make their first court appearance before Cradock Magistrate’s court on Thursday 1 August 2024.
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