Off-duty detective arrested among several hijack suspects
A POLICE detective implicated in a hijacking was among several suspects arrested during a raid at the weekend.
A joint operation between the K9 unit, the Flying Squad and Netstar Tracker was conducted on Saturday to find a Toyota Corolla Quest which had been hijacked during a house robbery last week, said police spokesperson FC van Wyk.
Van Wyk said when they swooped in on the location in Montana where the car was suspected to be, a Nissan parked outside the residence sped off.
A helicopter tracked down the Nissan in Valhalla Park and apprehended the driver, a 36-year-old man.
The Nissan turned out to be an unmarked police vehicle, and the suspect was an offduty detective who also had an official radio in his possession, Van Wyk said.
He said upon entering the premises, they spotted the Toyota Quest and a number of men in the yard who scattered in various directions when they noticed the police.
Three of the men were arrested and a prohibited firearm was found in the possession of one of them.
“At the same time, the Nissan that was parked in front of the house sped off and was pursued by the Netstar helicopter who relayed its position to the police.
“Meanwhile, the members chased a man that fled the scene on foot and he was soon apprehended nearby.
“A bag containing a prohibited firearm, a 9mm Norinca pistol, was recovered on the roof of an outer building on the premises.
“In the backyard the members also found an open safe,” Van Wyk said.
Investigations showed that the Mercedes-Benz that was parked in front of the premises was also stolen during a hijacking in Lansdowne last month, Van Wyk said.
“The members searched a Toyota Hiace which was parked in front of the Quest and found two more firearms, a R5 and a Luger pistol.
“Upon searching the residence, the members found a bank note counting machine, pellet and toy guns and a crowbar,” Van Wyk said.
The suspects arrested were aged 28, 36, 47, and 50.