A dramatic car chase involving police, a traffic officer, and two suspects ended in the arrest of two men and the seizure of illicit cigarettes worth more than R400,000 in the Driekop policing area in Limpopo on Sunday morning.
William Mongate, 26, and Leslie Tafireyi, 34, appeared before the Mecklenburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday, November 18.
The suspects were remanded in police custody, and their case was postponed to November 27 for a bail hearing and further investigations.
The dramatic operation began when a vigilant traffic officer stopped a grey Mercedes-Benz along the R37 public road near Ga-Mathipa, Mashemong village.
Suspicious of the vehicle’s black-covered cargo, the officer requested to conduct a search. The driver, however, refused and sped off in the direction of Burgersfort, prompting a police pursuit.
“During the chase, a white Audi motor vehicle with Gauteng registration number started obstructing the law enforcement officials not to stop the Mercedes-Benz vehicle that suddenly turned to a gravel road at Driekop, Holong village,” said police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba.
The pursuit reached a climax when the Mercedes-Benz was halted by a burst tyre. A search of the vehicle revealed 578 cartons of illicit Remington Gold (RG) cigarettes.
The driver, a 34-year-old Zimbabwean national, was arrested on the spot. Meanwhile, police discovered the white Audi parked along the main road, its driver still inside.
The vehicle was also searched, uncovering an additional 100 cartons of the same brand of illicit cigarettes. The Audi’s driver, a 26-year-old South African, was promptly arrested.
“The illicit cigarettes seized are estimated with a street value of more than R400,000,” Ledwaba said.
Both vehicles used in the crime were impounded, and the suspects are now facing charges of possession of illicit cigarettes.
Police investigations are ongoing, with authorities commending the quick thinking and coordination of law enforcement officers involved in the arrests.
IOL