Limpopo police clamp down on vehicle thieves during weekly joint operations

LIMPOPO – A total of 1 316 people were arrested during the latest weekly joint operations which were conducted in all clusters of the province, the police said in a statement on Monday evening.

The operations were effected from Sunday (October 17) through to Sunday (October 24) to ‘fight criminal activities across the province’, police spokesperson Brig Motlafela Mojapleo explained.

“The suspects were arrested for crimes ranging from murder, robbery, rape, sexual assault, theft of motor vehicles, stock theft, possession and dealing in drugs to possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition. The age of the arestees are between 23 and 50 years.”

Mojapleo added that police recovered five firearms, six stolen vehicles, various dangerous weapons and stolen properties during the joint operations. He highlighted a few of the vehicle theft successes:

A shop owner was among three people arrested on Monday (October 18) for their involvement in the hijacking of a truck.

“The members of the Limpopo Highway Patrol (LHP) received an alert about a grocery truck, destined for Jane Furse, that was hijacked along the R33. 

“The team responded and with the assistance of the a vehicle tracking company, the truck was traced to a store in Tafelkop, Botlopunya village.”

Three suspects, the 36-year-old shop owner, the truck driver (33) and a third man, aged 27 were arrested on the spot and all the stolen groceries valued at R200 000 were recovered.

Two more stolen vehicles were recovered in separate operations in the Vhembe and Sekhukhune districts, respectively.

In the Sekhukhune district, LHP members arrested a 41-year-old man for vehicle theft after they pulled him over for speeding. “The members were busy with their normal patrol duties when they noticed a VW Golf 5 travelling at a high speed. The vehicle was stopped and a thorough investigation conducted, whereby it was discovered that the vehicles was reported stolen at Wierdabrug in Gauteng,” he said.

Meanwhile in Vhembe, LHP members aided by members of the Flying Squad arrested a 32-year-old culprit after a high speed chase along the N1 south of Louis Trichardt. “The vehicle, a Toyota Hilux, was reported stolen in Etwatwa in Gauteng. The suspects faces a charge of possession of suspected stolen motor vehicle.

Provincial Police Commissioner Lt Genl Thembi Hadebe applauded the members for their endless efforts in fighting crime across the province. She also thanked the communities for their continuous support.

Some of these suspects have already appeared in court. The outcomes of these cases have not yet been made known.