Five men were arrested after an armed robbery at a cash pay-out point, a school taxi hijacking and a high speed chase.
|||Cape Town - Five men were arrested on Thursday after an armed robbery at a Cape Flats cash pay-out point in a community hall, Western Cape police said.
Captain Frederick van Wyk said around 9.30am five men entered the community hall in Ntsikizi Street, Crossroads, where the pay-point was set up for distributing pensions and government grants.
The men were armed with handguns and a R5 rifle.
“They fired shots inside the hall, overpowered the security guards, and fled the scene in a white Golf with an undisclosed amount of cash,” Van Wyk said.
The Volkswagen Golf was later found abandoned between Gugulethu and Nyanga, where the suspects hijacked a Toyota Quantum carrying school children.
“The children were dropped off, unharmed, by the suspects in Lower Crossroads.”
Members of the police's tactical response team pursued the suspects in a high-speed chase until Cornflower Road, Lentegeur, where the five men left the vehicle and fired shots at police.
In the ensuing shoot-out one of the suspects was wounded. No police or bystanders were wounded.
The men were arrested and the wounded suspect was taken to hospital for treatment.
Police later discovered that the Golf was reported stolen in Durbanville.
Four firearms, including a R5 rifle, were recovered.
“The suspects will appear in court soon on charges of armed robbery, attempted murder, hijacking, pointing (a) firearm, possession of a stolen vehicle, and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition,” Van Wyk said. - Sapa