NELSPRUIT -The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela has reiterated a commitment by police, that of removing unlicensed firearms and ammunition in the society. This comes after the arrest of two suspects, Khoasi Rantso (52) and Tumelo Lebanjoa (29) at Standerton in the afternoon of yesterday, Sunday 19 June 2022 around 14:15.

According to police information, Secunda Flying Squad members were patrolling around town when they spotted a suspicious black Honda Civic sedan with Lesotho registration number plates, occupied by two Lesotho nationals. After stopping the car, the two got out of the vehicle and ran on foot but police caught up with them and apprehended them.

Upon searching the vehicle, police found a 9mm pistol with 15 rounds of ammunition. The two suspects were immediately arrested after failing to produce a licence thereof. One of the two men was in possession of legal documents to be in South Africa meanwhile the other was found to be in the country illegally as he did not have the legal documents. However, the police are working in collaboration with the department of Home Affairs in this matter.

The vehicle was also seized for further investigation and the firearm will be taken for ballistic testing to determine whether it was used in crime committed elsewhere. The possibility of adding more charges against the suspects cannot be ruled out by the police as the investigation continues.

The two appeared at the Standerton Magistrate’s Court today (20 June 2022) facing the charges of being in possession of unlicensed firearm with ammunition. Their case was postponed to 23 June 2022 for further investigation meanwhile the two suspects were remanded in custody until then.

The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela has expressed her gratitude to the enthusiasm displayed by the members who are working tirelessly to remove unlawful firearms in the streets thereby creating a safe environment for the public. "We are encouraged by the impact that we are making thus far, in terms of retrieving firearms from the wrong hands and we are moving with speed. If one can check in the past few months we have recovered a lot of firearms with suspects arrested before executing their missions. We are hopeful that with the pace that we are moving in, we will stabilize and reduce violent crimes in the province," said the General.

Source: South African Police Service