Andrew
Online Reporter
THE South African Police Service (SAPS) has arrested two Zimbabwean nationals aged 27 and 30 for armed robbery and attempted murder.
This follows a foiled robbery attempt at a mine in Mpumalanga Province.
In a statement on Thursday, SAPS said the incident occurred yesterday at the Thaba Thueu Mine in Delmas.
“On March 30, 2022, at about 2.20am, the complainant and two of her colleagues were working at the main gate of Thaba Thueu Mine, (Moabsvelden) Delmas,” reads the statement.
“While standing outside the guardroom, an LDV Van came from inside the mine and stopped next to the guard room. The complainant then noticed three unknown suspects getting out of the vehicle, all carrying 9mm pistols.”
The suspects allegedly pointed the firearms at the complainant and asked her where her colleagues were.
After locating the complainant’s colleagues, the suspects then tied their hands with cable ties and pushed them into the guardroom for interrogation.
The suspects then asked one of the mineworkers identified as Mr Mvubu to switch off the cameras, but he did not cooperate.
“Mr Mvubu informed the suspects that he does not know how, and one of the suspects became angry and hit Mr Mvubu with a firearm on the head,” reads the statement.
“The suspects managed to damage the camera system to stop the recordings.”
They then drove back into the mine in the company of the mine supervisor, Mr Jack Lebuso.
“Mr Jack Lebuso was bleeding as he was shot by the suspects,” reads the statement.
“The suspects drove to the workshop. On arrival they noticed that there were too many people, so they drove back to the main gate.
“The suspects tied Mr Mvubu’s feet and hands and told him to sit down. Two suspects carried Mr Jack Lebuso from the vehicle and also put him in the guardroom. One suspect took a fire extinguisher from the vehicle and hit Mr Jack Lebuso on the head repeatedly with it and said that he was stubborn because he did not want to give them the information they needed.”
During the time of the robbery, some of the workshop personnel got suspicious and called the security manager, who then called Delmas SAPS at about 3.18am.
Members of Delmas SAPS reacted swiftly, leading to the recovery of diesel pumps and connectors and 1 000 litres of diesel.
Online Reporter