Cops arrest 8 after farm attack
2004-12-21 20:27
Bloemfontein - Police arrested eight men and recovered three firearms stolen from a farm near Bloemfontein, said Free State police on Tuesday.
Sergeant Thandi Mbambo said the Cloete family of Kroomspruit farm surprised a group of robbers at the farmhouse last Wednesday.
"The robbers had loaded two of the farm bakkies with household appliances," said Mbambo. The Cloete family phoned a neighbour for assistance.
Shots were fired and the robbers fled with a vehicle they had hijacked earlier.
Mbambo said: "They took three firearms - an R-4 rifle and two pistols."
Police arrested seven of the men at an informal settlement near Bloemspruit and one in Rustenburg.
The suspects were due to appear in Bloemfontein magistrate's court on Thursday on charges of housebreaking, theft and hijacking.
Mbambo said police were investigating the possibility the suspects could be linked to other cases, as other household appliances were found in their possession.
- SAPA