Gauteng police busted an ATM bombing syndicate and arrested eight members of the syndicate in the early hours of Thursday in Devland, south of Johannesburg.
”This is the opening of the belly of the beast. We said we are going to nail them … We nailed them,” said Gauteng police spokesperson Superintendent Eugene Opperman.
Opperman said police confronted the eight men moments after they bombed a First National Bank ATM in Ridgeway early on Thursday.
He said a provincial South African Police Service (SAPS) task team working on ATM bombings, together with other units of the SAPS, used a police helicopter to confront the men as they drove away from the scene.
They were stopped in nearby Devland.
”They were a heavily armed gang but with the quick response of the police they had no opportunity to escape.”
He said the men tried running in all directions, with money tucked into their clothes, but they could not get away.
Police also seized two AK47 rifles, an R5 rifle, an R4 rifle, a revolver and a large amount of money.
The men, aged between 25 and 45, will face charges of theft and various charges under the Explosives Act.
They will also face charges of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
”This is possibly the single quickest and most noteworthy arrest [of ATM bombers],” said Opperman. — Sapa