Police have made a number of arrests over the past week for the illegal possession of firearms and ammunition and have also seized a cache of weapons with their serial numbers removed.
On Sunday July 24, police arrested a 27-year-old man for the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, while conducting high density patrols in Manenberg to combat gang violence in the area.
They spotted a man walking towards a marked police vehicle, throw something down and running away. Police gave chase and managed to corner him and brought him back to where he dropped the item. They found that it was a 9mm pistol with the serial number filed off as well as 14 live rounds of ammunition.
The man was arrested for the illegal possession of the firearm and ammunition and on an additional charge of being in possession of a prohibited firearm. The suspect appeared in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court on Monday July 25.
On Wednesday July 20 Metro police arrested a 35-year-old man in Manenberg for the possession of firearms and ammunition.
Members attached to the City of Cape Town’s gang unit, were deployed in the Manenberg policing precinct. While patrolling the N2, they received information about a white Toyota Tazz with four illegal firearms. They spotted the vehicle in Duinefontein Road near Manenberg and as they approached the vehicle, they saw the driver throw a bag underneath the car. They checked the bag and found four 9mm pistols with 40, 9mm rounds of ammunition. The firearms also had their serial numbers removed.
The 35-year-old man was arrested for the possession of illegal and unlicensed firearms and ammunition and an additional charge of being in possession of a prohibited firearm.
The suspect will appear in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court today, Wednesday July 27, for a bail application.
On the same day, at noon, a 31-year-old man was arrested near Pam Court, Manenberg, for the possession of an unlicensed firearm.
Police responded to complaints of gunshots in the area and on arrival on the scene saw a man running.
They managed to corner him and saw him throwing a firearm down and arrested him. Upon further inspection, they saw that the serial number had been removed.
The 31-year-old will be charged with the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition and an additional charge of possession of a prohibited firearm. The suspect will appear in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court on Friday July 29.
Shortly after this arrests, at 1.45pm, a 21-year-old man was arrested for the possession of an illegal firearm and ammunition.
Members of Manenberg SAPS Crime Prevention were on patrol when they heard gunshots in the vicinity of Rio Grande Road. As they drove through the area, they saw a man running towards them but when he saw SAPS members he threw something down. He was found with a 9mm Norinco pistol with four live rounds in the gun.
The suspect was arrested and will be charged with the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. He will appear in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court on Friday July 29.
On Tuesday July 19, at 12.30pm, members of Bishop Lavis Crime Prevention Unit arrested an 18-year-old man for the illegal possession of a Taurus pistol, ammunition and one magazine. He appeared in the Bishop Lavis Magistrate’s Court on Thursday July 21.
Also on Tuesday, while police members were busy with patrols in Robert Sobukwe Drive, they arrested four men aged 42 to 45 from Bishop Lavis, Heinz Park and Tafelsig, for the illegal possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.
Upon searching the vehicle, police found a 9mm Lorcin firearm with ammunition which was stolen . The suspects appeared in the Bishop Lavis Magistrate’s Court on Thursday July 21.
Anyone with information regarding illegal firearms and ammunition, can contact Manenberg SAPS on 021 699 9400 or Crime Stop on 08600 10111.