Police raids nab gang members, illegal immigrants

Gang members belonging to rival gangs and illegal immigrants were arrested in two separate joint police operations

A total of 30 gang members were arrested in Bronville last week when members of Al Qaeda and Ruff 3 stabbed each other to death and a full-out clash broke out on Wednesday evening.

According to police spokesperson, Warrant Officer Malebo Khosana, a joint operation was launched by Thabong and Welkom Cluster task teams as well as the tactical response team (TRT) to clamp down on these criminal groups.

He said an assault case was reported in Bronville on Wednesday, August 7. That morning, a man believed to be an Al Qaeda group member was allegedly stabbed by Ruff 3 members.  He was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries and a case of assault was opened for further investigation. No one was arrested.

“Later that day at about 19:30 another man, aged 25 was stabbed to death. We believe that the stabbing was instigated by the Al Qaeda members in what is suspected to be a revenge killing.

“Another serious clash between Al Qaeda and Ruff 3 erupted in the early hours of Thursday, August 8, where we believe one of the groups’ intention was to revenge for the death of their own members,” said Khosana.

Khosana said a joint police operation managed to contain the situation and restore order in the volatile township.

“A total of 20 Al Qaeda group members were arrested while 10 Ruff 3 members were caught.”

Khosana said the suspects were not directly linked to the assault and murder cases reported on Wednesday. They were charged with public violence and possession of dangerous weapons. The weapons were confiscated by police on the scene. A further two illegal immigrants were also arrested in Bronville.

“The operation was extended to Thabong which is the neighbouring township of Bronville. The SAPS members managed to arrest 16 undocumented persons.

They are suspected to be from Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. These illegal immigrants were placed under police custody pending their deportation to their respective countries of origin,” added Khosana.

Thabong Cluster Commander Major General Lerato Molale praised police involved in the operations for their dedicated efforts to bring stability in the two communities.

“The SAPS members’ joint initiative has assuredly noted, especially its success in reclaiming our communities from the criminals.

“This success will allay the fear of crime from our law-abiding communities in the sense that they will have confidence in our SAPS members in turbulent times,” said Molale.