Five Facebook scam suspects injured in police shootout in Midrand [VIDEO]

Five robbery suspects have been injured during a shootout with the police in Midrand, north of Johannesburg.

It is understood that the incident occurred on Monday as police were investigating a case of armed robbery linked to a bogus car sale conducted on the social media platform, Facebook Marketplace.

Gauteng Deputy Commissioner Fred Kekana said that last week, a prospective buyer was shot and robbed in the same area.

Fake advertising

He said a customer saw a car advertised on Facebook Marketplace and contacted the seller to buy the same vehicle.

This week, another person saw the same car on Marketplace on Facebook and also made arrangements to buy it.

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“He felt uncomfortable. When they (seller) came, they said meet us at this place, then he engaged the police and the police have been working on information, and they realised the same people are linked to the previous case.”

Shootout

Kekana said the police then pounced on the criminals.

“A tactical team was assembled, and they accompanied the potential victim to meet the suspects. When the suspects noticed that the man was accompanied by police, they started shooting. The police shot back in retaliation.

“Fortunately, none of those police officers who were there were injured,” Kekana said.

Kekana added that the suspects tried to speed off, but police shot at the tyres, causing their car to roll and injure them.

“Five of those suspects who went to the hospital were then arrested,” Kekana said.

Officers recovered two pistols after the shootout.

Gauteng Deputy Commissioner Fred Kekana tells #Newzroom405’s @LindA_MniSii that the suspects, who were shot and injured during a police shootout in Midrand, lured their victims through online marketplaces.

Watch: https://t.co/W5D1aRInKk pic.twitter.com/L8nh9qOTEq

— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) August 25, 2025

Warning

Last year, Eastern Cape police warned South Africans not to fall prey to criminals who are exploiting Facebook Marketplace to rob their victims in the country.

This after two brothers, Aaron and Kyle Alberts from St Albans, were murdered in Nelson Mandela Bay in Gqeberha after responding to a Facebook advertisement.

Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said they were “deeply concerned and saddened” by the deaths, calling them “senseless.

Naidu said the brothers, aged 19 and 30, responded to an ad for a TV set on Facebook’s Marketplace, but it seemed they were lured under false pretences.

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