Suspected hijacking syndicate cracked

2010-07-15 18:17

Belfast - Since Monday, police have arrested five suspected hijackers who are believed to be part of a syndicate that operates in Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

The men, who are between the ages of 25 and 26, were arrested in Mpumalanga when investigators received information that four vehicles that had been hijacked or stolen in Belfast were about to be taken to Limpopo.

"The vehicles - a Ford sedan, Golf 5, Jetta and a Nissan bakkie - were stolen in and around Belfast between June 12 and July 5,” said Belfast police spokesperson Skwapa McDonald on Thursday.

"They were ready to be taken to Limpopo to be resprayed and sold."

Guards overpowered

The Nissan bakkie was hijacked from security guards who were responding to a house-breaking call in Belfast on June 12, where the suspects are believed to have broken in.

The guards were overpowered and their bakkie was used as a getaway vehicle.

Goods stolen from the house were also loaded onto the bakkie.

The owners of the house were not hurt.

McDonald said the mastermind in the hijackings is from Belfast and is known to collaborate with criminals in other provinces.

"His accomplices have confessed to the house robbery in Belfast and led us to where some of the stolen goods were sold,” she said.

The suspects were transported to the Burgersfort Police Station on Thursday, where they face other charges related to house-breaking and vehicle hijackings.

They will appear in the Belfast Magistrate's Court on Monday on charges of house-breaking, theft and vehicle hijacking.

- African Eye