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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Soweto story featuring clever police and....happy ending. |
| 2009-02-25 |
| Four Robbers die in ambush. Four heavily armed robbers have been killed and three others, including a policeman, injured in a gunbattle after police foiled a truck hijacking and armed robbery. This took place on Tuesday after the police officers had driven about 100km to thwart the robbery on a deserted farm road west of Pretoria. The shootout occurred over a 5km stretch of road. It began when police waiting in specifically designated areas launched their attack as the AK-47-wielding gunmen opened fire on a light utility van transporting cigarettes to several shops in the Broederstroom area. The Star has learnt that the officer shot was hiding inside the delivery van with other policemen. The policeman, who is from the Crime Intelligence Unit, was shot in a shoulder as the gunmen tried to force the van to stop. Unbeknown to the gunmen, the van they were attacking was filled with policemen. The police had received a tip-off last week that the gang of seven, who are responsible for a spate of bloody robberies in the Pretoria and Joburg areas over recent months, planned to attack the van on Tuesday. Realising they were surrounded, the gunmen opened fire on the officers as they tried to flee. Police armed with heavy-calibre machineguns returned fire as they surrounded and blocked the robbers' escape route. The Star has learnt that police from the Johannesburg Crime Intelligence Unit, Special Task Force, Moroka police station trio task team, West Rand Flying Squad and Roodepoort Dog Unit began following the suspects as they left their hideout in Soweto, trailing them for nearly 100km. Evidence of the ferociousness of the shootout could be seen from the scores of bullet shell casings that littered the Hartebeeshoek Skeerpoort service road intersection. As police, hidden alongside the grass embankments at the intersection, opened fire on four robbers shooting from a Volvo station wagon at the cigarette van, officers in several other vehicles and a helicopter chased after three more robbers who managed to flee the scene in a delivery van. The four men in the Volvo were found lying metres away from their vehicle in thick grass. Chasing the remaining robbers at high speed along the service road, police eventually shot out their vehicle's tyres. This caused the driver to lose control of his vehicle and crash head-on into a truck next to the Hartbeespoort satellite police station. Two of the suspects were caught inside the delivery vehicle, while the third was arrested as he tried to flee through a mealie field. Haroon Malemela had just arrived at work when he heard gunfire as the fleeing robbers were chased along the service road. "I had just got to work when I heard gunfire. The noise was incredible. When I ran outside, I saw a helicopter flying low over the road, with a policeman leaning out of it firing a massive gun. "He was shooting over and over again at the van, which crashed moments after the policeman opened fire," he said. Running to the service road, Malemela watched as dozens of officers surrounded the delivery van lying on its side, while others chased down the third suspect. "I have never seen anything like it. The police did terrific work. They really need to be praised for catching these thugs and ensuring that no innocent people were killed," he said. Police spokesperson Inspector Brian Dlamini said police recovered two AK-47s, two 9mm pistols, a .357 magnum, a .38 Special revolver - whose serial numbers had all been filed off - along with numerous rounds of hollow-point ammunition and a high-voltage stun gun. He said the police were investigating information which indicated that the vehicles the robbers were using had recently been hijacked in Joburg. Describing the shootout, Dlamini said: "Police were able to return fire, killing four of the robbers and arresting three others." He added that an officer was slightly injured when he was shot in a shoulder. He said a case of attempted murder, attempted robbery and possession of unlicensed guns and ammunition were being investigated. As the investigation progressed, Dlamini believed more charges would be added. Visible Policing Divisional Commissioner Arno Lamoer said the success of the operation was a sign of the courage and dedication of the officers involved to make South Africa a safer place. "Time and time again it has been proved that an integrated approach between police units, together with partnerships with the private industry and co-operation from the community, is the best way to effectively rid our communities of armed thugs," he said. Toyota bakkie photo with Kalashnikovs and pistols at the link. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #5 They be watching too much Eddie Murphy. |
| Posted by: Skunky Glins 5*** 2009-02-25 22:58 |
| #4 Thank you, that makes sense. |
| Posted by: Rednek Jim 2009-02-25 15:09 |
| #3 Visible policing is a term used to described the copper on the beat or in the patrol car, visible to the public, as opposed to rear echelon support staff and detectives. Boots on the ground so to speak. In South Africa, detectives comprise 18% of the service and civilians 17%, and about 8% of the total staff is assigned to head office functions in Pretoria. None of the aforementioned perform visible patrols. In addition, a sizeable proportion of station-level uniformed staff are assigned to other duties, such as the client service centre, guarding holding cells or public buildings, and administrative tasks. Tooth to tail, not so good. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-02-25 14:10 |
| #2 I just have to ask, what does he mean by the phrase "Visible Policing"? They have Invisible cops? |
| Posted by: Rednek Jim 2009-02-25 13:52 |
| #1 Police armed with heavy-calibre machineguns returned fire as they surrounded and blocked the robbers' escape route. Ooooh! THAT had to hurt! |
| Posted by: Ptah 2009-02-25 10:27 |