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Criminals tracked down and arrested
Several members of the Ladysmith police rushed to the scene after a truck was hijacked on 24 November 2008. Their efforts resulted in 12 people being arrested within a few hours of the crime being committed.
A truck carrying a cargo of metal products was stopped along the Harrismith Road by two armed hijackers.
"The suspects forced the driver to stop and then drove away with the truck. The driver managed to alert police," said Captain Charmaine Struwig.
With the help of a vehicle tracking device police searched for the hijacked truck. Police officials from the Ladysmith Collision Response team were the first to locate the truck in the Peacetown area, a rural community on the outskirts of Ladysmith. The truck was left abandoned along the road and some of the cargo was missing.
Police then went back to the vehicle tracking system and re-visited the route, with stop and searches during the day. While revisiting the route taken by the truck, police officials from the Ladysmith Dog Unit and Detective Services spotted a vehicle travelling along the Bluebank Road which fitted the description of the hijackers' vehicle. "After a short chase police arrested two occupants in the vehicle, recovered an unlicenced firearm and confiscated the suspects' vehicle".
On questioning the two hijackers, police were referred to a farm along the Bluebank Road. "On arrival police discovered four suspects guarding some of the stolen cargo. The four were promptly arrested".
With a little patience, the waiting police officers arrested two more of the hijackers' gang. They had arrived on the farm in a vehicle transporting stolen property. Two vehicles were also confiscated by police.
"Further questioning of the suspects led to a house in E- Section Ezakheni where two further suspects were arrested and several metal products were recovered." More arrests followed, as the rest of the gang was traced to Ezakheni.
During the arrest, three vehicles were confiscated and one unlicensed firearm was recovered. A large amount of cash was also recovered which is believed to have been the proceeds of the sale of the stolen goods.
The suspects are set to appear in court later this week.
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