Smugglers just cannot escape team effort

Date: 27 February 2015 By: Isabel Venter

The Makhado Police had some help this week in apprehending four suspects who were allegedly trying to smuggle contraband cigarettes through Louis Trichardt.

The four men were all driving in a silver BMW along Hlanganani Street on Tuesday morning. According to information supplied by the police, they tried to speed away from a passing police van. They met their match, however, not only with the police officers, but also with members of the Soutpansberg Town Watch and community, who quickly cut off their escape route out of town.

The four men tried to escape in a southerly direction along Hlanganani Street but were quickly stopped. The police forced their vehicle off the road. Their BMW came to a halt against the fence bordering the N1.

One of the suspects managed to jump over the fence, cross the N1 and flee on foot into the Green Belt area.

A search party was assembled by the town watch to apprehend the suspect. It was, however, the vigilant observation of Ms Andél Greyling that ensured that this last suspect was apprehended. She spotted a man who met the description of the suspect and immediately followed him. While she followed the man, she notified the town watch members, who also started tracking the man with the police.

At some stage, the man got into a car. What followed was a high-speed, movie-like chase through town. This after the man got wind of the pursuit and tried to escape via the gravel roads in Eltivillas, in the hope of reaching the Vondeling gravel road. His escape was blocked off at the N1 intersection, and he then drove east, past the municipal dumping site.

The man did not get very far. During his high-speed attempt to get away, he lost control over his vehicle while going around a sharp bend in the road. At that stage, the police were hot on his heels, and the fugitive could flee no further and was arrested.

The police, upon searching the BMW that had been forced off along the N1, found loads of cartons of Remmington Gold cigarettes, of which the value has yet to be established. The four men, all in their late 20s and 30s, had yet to appear in court by the time of our going to press.

In the meantime, the police also seized more illegal cigarettes with an estimated street value of R474 000 last Wednesday (18th) on a farm situated along the Ledig road. No arrests were made, but a stolen Toyota Fortuner was recovered.

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Isabel Venter

Isabel joined the Zoutpansberger and Limpopo Mirror in 2009 as a reporter. She holds a BA Degree in Communication Sciences from the University of South Africa. Her beat is mainly crime and court reporting.

More photos... 

Game up! The suspect who tried to flee from the police was caught after a high-speed chase through town. The man's identity cannot be published at this stage as he has yet to appear in court.