Ivory park police officers have urged motorists to desist from sitting in vehicles parked in the street in the evenings to avoid becoming victims of crime.
An Ebony Park man and his girlfriend were seated in his car on 22 January when they were hijacked by a gang of four men. Spokesperson for Ivory Park Police Station, Captain Bernard Matimulane, said one of the gang members allegedly raped the woman as the other two suspects are said to have forced the man to go to an ATM to withdraw money.
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“The suspects’ luck ran out at the ATM in Tswelopele after the man turned against them. He attempted to grab one of the suspects and screamed in the process. This rattled the hijackers who fled the scene on foot,” said Matimulane.
An off-duty police officer assisted in arresting one of the suspects and recovered a stolen cellphone and the victim’s car keys. The arrested 30-year-old is expected to appear in the Tembisa Magistrates’ Court to face a charge of hijacking.
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The search for the three other suspects is underway. The police are conducting a thorough background check on the suspect to establish whether he has been involved in other criminal activities elsewhere.
Station Commander of Ivory Park Police Station, Brigadier David Mbongeni Ngcobo has once more appealed to members of the public to stop this practice which makes them a target for criminals. “It saddens me that we have people being killed, robbed and kidnapped for something that could have been avoided,” said Ngcobo.
Details: 011 990 9600.
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