DURBAN - Police are on a manhunt for a group of suspects who robbed a cash-in-transit (CIT) van in northern KwaZulu-Natal on Monday evening.
National police spokesperson Colonel Athlenda Mathe said KwaZulu-Natal police were on a manhunt for a group of suspects who robbed a G4S cash van on Monday evening at about 6.15pm. The cash van was transporting cash from Jozini to Richards Bay when gunshots were fired.
“The security official was ordered out of the cash van at gunpoint. A group of more than 10 suspects bombed the truck and took off with an undisclosed amount of money using different vehicles, among them being two VW Polos. It’s suspected that the suspects fled towards Pongola,” Mathe said.
Police appealed to the community to come forward with information that may assist in investigations.
On Monday evening, crime activist Yusuf Abramjee took to Twitter and shared that a CIT robbery had taken place. A cash van had been bombed on the N2 between Mkhuze and Hluhluwe in KZN. It is believed that 14 suspects were involved.
A Twitter user said the N2 was closed for at least four hours after the incident. The traffic queue was more than 10km towards Empangeni.
Photos https://t.co/n3dLhojPHB pic.twitter.com/1vxTiEFHVP
— Yusuf Abramjee (@Abramjee) November 29, 2021
Meanwhile, during his presentation of the quarter two (July 1, 2021 to September 30, 2021) crime statistics, Police Minister Bheki Cele said police were starting to make much needed gains in responding to brazen gangs targeting cash vans.
Cele said 12 less cash-in-transit heists were committed between July and September this year.
“A double-digit percentage decrease of 18.8% in CITs is welcomed and is largely owed to heightened police visibility and the interception of would-be gangs through intelligence gathering. However, 52 such attacks in three months is unacceptable and police must respond firmly,” Cele said.
He added that the police must continue to fine-tune their approach and responses to the crime.
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