A joint operation held by the Pietermaritzburg Public Order Police and Msinga SAPS Crime prevention team at Msinga area yielded positive results. The members recovered a total of 15 unlicensed firearms and arrested a total of nine suspects for illegal firearms in the area. The first operation was a two-day operation which was held from 3 January 2015 until 4 January where the members recovered eight illegal firearms including high calibre rifles. Five suspects were arrested and charged for possession of illegal firearms and ammunition. The arrested suspects already appeared in the Msinga Magistrate’s Court. Yesterday, 19 January 2015 the members raided few homesteads in the area following up information about illegal firearms. Seven unlicensed firearms and 16 live rounds were recovered from various homesteads. Recovered firearms includes rifles, pistols and .38 special revolvers. Four suspects were arrested and charged with possession of unlicensed firearm and ammunition. They will appear today, 20 January 2015 in the Msinga Magistrate’s Court. All recovered firearms will be sent for ballistic tests to establish if they were used in any other crimes in the country.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni applauded the good work displayed by dedicated members. This is shown by good successes in recovering illegal firearms and ammunition in the Msinga area. ‘I also thank the members of the community for their continued support in the fight against crime by providing valuable information to the police about illegal firearms in their areas. These firearms are normally used in robberies and killing of innocent people in our country,’ she said.