Four men are still at large after they tried to rob a British American Tobacco truck on Wednesday morning on the Old Johannesburg Road, leading to a multi-vehicle crash.
“No arrest have been made regarding the four men who attempted to rob a delivery truck near the Old Johannesburg Road earlier this week,” said Gauteng provincial police spokesperson Captain Tsekiso Mofokeng.
Mofokeng said the four men fled on foot after attempting to rob a delivery truck on the corner of Panorama Street and Old Johannesburg Road.
Vice chairman of Wierdabrug sector 2 CPF Pieter Venter said the men fled the scene after firing shots and abandoning a white VW Jetta they were driving in the attempted robbery.
“This road was closed due to the four-vehicle accident.”
He said police, Orange Fox security and Monitor Net arrived on the scene after the truck driver had collided with a white Renault and ultimately crashed through the palisade fence of the Oriental Plaza.
“The four men in the Jetta lost control of their vehicle and collided with a minibus taxi. The driver of the Jetta fled in the direction of Hornbill Street and jumped over fences in the Rooihuiskraal area,” Venter said.
The three passengers abandoned the Jetta and jumped into a taxi close to the scene.
Eyewitnesses said the taxi took off at a reasonably high speed.
A CPF member who was at the location seconds after the attempted robbery raised the alarm.
“A police helicopter gave chase,” Venter said.
Orange Fox employee Venessa Jacobs said cartridge casings were found on the scene and both the mini bus taxi and the Renault drivers received medical attention.
“No serious injuries were reported,” she said
Police recovered falsified number plates and car jamming equipment from the robbers’ vehicle.
Venter said a source reported the men had attempted to stop the tobacco delivery vehicle before it got to the intersection of the Old Johannesburg road.
Mofokeng said the driver of the tobacco truck said he had noticed a vehicle following him.
He said the attempted robbery happened just after 08:00 on Wednesday, and that police had opened a case of attempted robbery and were investigating.
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