Men arrested for unlicensed firearms

Police officers in the Ugu district recently arrested men who were found in possession of illegal firearms.

According to Port Shepstone police spokesperson, Captain Petros Mpinge, on Saturday, September 10 members of the SAPS K9 Unit were patrolling the N2 Main road in Ezinqoleni when they spotted a suspicious vehicle with an out of town registration with four men inside.

Mpinge said they stopped the vehicle and two of the men fled.

He said the other two men aged 29 and 31 were arrested after the vehicle was searched and a homemade firearm and ammunition were found in the vehicle, as well as a knife.

In another incident, Mpinge said SAPS Umzinto members were patrolling on Friday, September 9 when they received information about a man in possession of a firearm at Msholozi Informal Settlement.

“They proceeded to the said house and after a search was conducted, a black Beretta pistol with 11 rounds of ammunition was found under the mattress of the bed. The 33 year old man was placed under arrest. Another firearm was recovered in Umzinto on Saturday, September 10 when police members saw a group of men standing near a building and one man began to act suspiciously and ran. Members quickly gave chase and apprehended him. Upon searching him, a brown Beretta pistol was found in his possession,” said Mpinge, adding that all the suspects were charged for possession of unlicensed firearm and ammunition and will appear in the respective courts this week.

Meanwhile, Ugu District Commissioner, Major General Sethenya Nxamagele said she was pleased with the recoveries of the firearms and encouraged her members to be determined to reduce the number of unlicensed firearms in the district which greatly contribute to violent crimes.

Nxamagele also urged the public to continue reporting anyone with unlicensed firearms to the police.

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