Minister of Police Fikile Mbalula, would like to congratulate the speedy response by security forces foils airport robbery
At around 10:00 this morning a group of approximately eight suspects, some of whom were wearing a security company reflector jacket entered the cargo terminal in two cars. Some suspects took control of the main gate while the others proceeded to a Swiss-port warehouse and stole a truck carrying cellphones.
As the Police Ministry we are happy with the mechanisms which form part of the joint reactive strategies being employed to combat robberies at the airport. "We want to reassure South Africans that robbery and crime in our ports will be the thing of the past, we are squeezing space for criminals to operate." Minister Mbalula said.
Two suspects fled on foot across the R21 highway. One suspect was shot dead in a shootout with a Gauteng K9 member and the second was arrested. Two firearms, including a pistol and a revolver were recovered from these suspects.
Minister Mbalula is urging companies to be security conscious and avoid being vulnerable to criminals. This will augment the efforts of Police and security cluster to protect and prevent business robberies.
"This case is being investigated by the recently established multi-disciplinary team comprising of, among others, specialized investigators, Crime Intelligence and Forensic Experts. We have an absolute confidence that South Africans will start to see the decrease in business robbery which is part of trio crimes" Minister Mbalula added.
Minister Mbalula, applauds the working relation of our security forces in fighting crime we urge South Africans to also partner with our Police in this fight.
Media Enquiries:
Vuyo Mhaga
Ministry of Police Spokesperson
Tel: 0766365193
E-mail: mhagav@saps.gov.za
