Pretoria – Members of the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) were involved in a shootout with three alleged notorious criminals. One was arrested, the others escaped.
TMPD spokesperson Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said tactical unit members were patrolling the R55 Road next to Maunde Street on Wednesday when they noticed a suspicious Mercedes-Benz.
“The vehicle was stopped and the driver got out quickly to approach the officers. The officers then requested to see his driving licence,” Mahamba said.
“He mentioned that he had left his driving licence in another vehicle and tried to offer bribe money to the officers, but the officers refused and asked to do an inspection on his vehicle.”
When one of the TMPD officers approached the vehicle, he noticed two “suspicious male passengers” with firearms.
“The officer reacted swiftly and drew his firearm. The male passengers got out of the vehicle and started shooting. The officer returned fire, injuring the two suspects.
“One passenger of a minibus taxi that was passing by was also injured in the crossfire. The TMPD members were not injured,” said Mahamba.
He said the driver of the Mercedes-Benz drove off. One injured suspect ran into the nearby bushes and the other, who was seriously injured, was arrested and taken to hospital under police guard.
“Upon arresting the suspect, it was discovered that these suspects were notorious criminals wanted for more than 15 cases of crimes, such as murder, ATM bombings, assault and house robberies, among others.
“On the phone of the suspect, a horrific video of the crime they committed in the past week was seen where they were robbing a house and strangling a child to death.
“Other videos were of the money that they were showing off after committing robberies and ATM bombings,” said Mahamba.
He said police were investigating.
“Two suspects are still at large and we urge members of the public who might have any information regarding these criminals to come forward and assist the police by contacting their nearest police station or the TMPD at 012 358 7095/7096. Well done to the TMPD tactical unit members for their swift response in combating crime,” said Mahamba.
IOL