Drivers stoned, robbed

Gangsters precipitate night collision, two arrested

TWO suspected robbers believed to be part of a gang were arrested following a brazen attack on motorists involved in a collision caused by stone-throwing on the R300.

The two allegedly tried to rob the motorists.

According to the city’s metro police, one of the drivers said he had swerved to avoid stones being hurled, and had collided with another vehicle.

The second driver ended up in hospital.

The City said the incident occurred just before midnight on Saturday. The metro police control room dispatched officers to the R300 between the N2 and Hindle Road following reports of stone throwing.

When officers arrived, they found an accident scene involving two motor vehicles and a gang of about 10 suspects robbing the motorists.

The two officers arrested two suspects, aged 18 and 38, and recovered a cellphone belonging to one of the motorists, while the rest of the suspects fled the scene.

The two will face charges of malicious damage to property, robbery and possession of stolen property.

“This callous attack is symptomatic of an ongoing challenge on our roads.

“Fortunately, our officers were able to respond quickly and come to the aid of the motorists involved. I hope that the suspects in this case are prosecuted to the full extent of the law, so that we can send a strong message that this type of criminality will not be tolerated,” said JP Smith, the City’s mayco member for safety and security.

Meanwhile, Smith said elsewhere metro police also arrested 13 suspects for possession of drugs, theft, assault and drunk-driving.

On Sunday afternoon, a taxi driver wanted in connection with murder in Mfuleni was pulled over by the Ghost Squad, who found the driver to be “14 times over the legal limit”. The driver also had an outstanding warrant for a previous drunk-driving charge.

“The details of this case leave one absolutely speechless. The frustrating thing is that we had a similar case not too long ago, where a driver was arrested for drunk-driving and it emerged that he had been arrested twice before for the same offence,” Smith said.