Crime duo arrested at last

2007-08-03 11:43

Johannesburg - Two people, among them an escaped prisoner, have been arrested in connection with several bank robberies, Gauteng police said on Friday.

Director Sally de Beer said Maxwell Khumalo, 30, and Dumisani Dube, 26, were arrested on Thursday.

"Police arrested the two on the streets of Booysens. Khumalo has been linked to approximately 28 armed bank robberies committed between July 2000 and July 2007."

The men are linked to a gang who have been robbing banks around the country.

De Beer said two other members of the gang of about 15 men had already been arrested in connection with bank robberies committed in 2003.

"Khumalo, who is dubbed the Hammer Man because of modus operandi, escaped from the Boksburg Prison in December 2003," she said.

At the time of his escape, Khumalo was facing several charges of armed robbery.

"Police later identified Khumalo from evidence retrieved from a Tembisa bank robbery committed on April 5, 2005 and have been on his trail for over two years," said De Beer.

Khumalo's gang may also be linked to the murder of two police officers who were killed after stopping the group's getaway vehicle while they were fleeing from a Mpumalanga bank robbery in May.

- SAPA