A man and a woman accused of being part of a syndicate responsible for robbing shoppers at busy supermarkets were nabbed in the Verulam CBD – KZN.
The syndicate would enter a supermarket under the pretext of shopping. Once they locate their victim, they would drop a money packet filled with what appears to be hundred and fifty rands notes near their target. Unknown to the victim, only the top two bank notes were real which were wrapped around a wad of newspaper. They would then approach their victim and point out the money packet on the ground and enquire if it belonged to them.
The smooth-talking scammer would then convince the victim to the leave the store with him in order to split the money between them. Once outside the store, the suspect would ask the victim to get into his vehicle. They would then drive off to a quieter location where they would rob their victims of their valuables and dump them on the side of the road. The syndicate would generally consist of four to five people.
A female victim was confronted by a male in a silver VW Polo as she exited the supermarket to split the cash with a man who pointed it out to her. He was using a SAPS face mask and produced a SAPS appointment card. He informed the woman that she was under arrest for theft. He then coerced her to get into the vehicle with the person she was expected to spilt the cash with.
They drove to Grange In Verulam – KZN where they robbed her of an undisclosed amount of cash, a Samsung cellphone, and her handbag containing her documents and keys. Both men then sped off. The victim registered a criminal case at the Verulam SAPS and informed the store management of the incident.
Today the gang returned when they were confronted by employees of the business. The suspects spilt up and fled with staff in pursuit. A female and a male suspect were apprehended. During the chase, the male suspect threw a bank packet containing the “wad of cash”.
Management of the store contacted Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA). Reaction Officers proceeded to the supermarket and on arrival interviewed the suspects. The female stated that she had not met the male suspect before however CCTV footage confirmed that she handed him the bank packet in the store.
The victim in yesterday’s incident was contacted and on arrival positively identified the male suspect as the person who produced the SAPS appointment card and the driver of the silver VW Polo that was used in the commission of the crime. The suspects vehicle was located outside the supermarket.
On arrival of the Verulam Police, a photocopied SAPS appointment card that was laminated and the SAPS face mask was recovered in his possession. The picture in the identification was blurred and no details were on the rear. Both suspects were placed under arrest and detained.
The two are believed to be linked to several cases of robbery.
Scammer nabbed in Verulam https://t.co/FC6mLoam5b #ArriveAlive #Scammers #ReactionUnitSouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/5d4xhtUcrR
— Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) May 20, 2022