ECape heist gang arrested

2007-08-02 19:07

Johannesburg - A police spokesperson says 13 men suspected of belonging to a gang behind a spate of cash-in-transit heists in the Eastern Cape have been arrested.

Spokesperson Sally de Beer said the men, as a group, had already been linked to eight cash-in-transit heists in Mthatha and surrounding areas.

She said: "The men, as individuals, have been linked to a variety of other crimes that include hijacking, armed robbery, possession of unlicensed firearms and escaping from custody."

One of the men had been linked to 23 cases.

Two of them were arrested while allegedly on their way to rob a security van in Mthatha on July 11.

Others were tracked by detectives and found in Cape Town, Margate, Kokstad, and other parts of the Eastern Cape.

"A variety of weapons, including pistols, revolvers, rifles, an AK-47, a hand grenade and a firearm stolen from a security guard during a robbery, were recovered during the arrests," De Beer said.

Further arrests were possible and it was likely that the gang would be linked to other cases.

The men, aged between 22 and 38, would appear in the Mthatha Magistrate's on August 28.

- SAPA