Durban — A house-breaking suspect was allegedly robbed by the police of a gazebo he stole in Verulam.
That was according to Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) spokesperson Prem Balram who said a housebreaking suspect was allegedly robbed by police officers of a gazebo which he stole minutes earlier from a home on Trevenen Road in Lotusville on Sunday, January 22, 2023.
Balram said reaction officers attending to the scene of a murder and robbery on Wick Street in the Verulam central business district on Monday morning, identified the suspect as a sought-after burglar.
He said that officers approached the 31-year-old Trenance Park, KZN resident and confronted him with a video which showed him leaving a property with a stolen gazebo.
The video was posted on social media on Sunday afternoon after the homeowner discovered that forced entry was used to gain entry into her residence.
“During an interview, the suspect initially informed Rusa members that the person in the clip was his twin brother.
“He later admitted to the house break-in after reaction officers confirmed that he did not have a twin sibling,” Balram said.
“He explained that after fleeing the property, he was stopped by two men who were having lunch in the parking lot of the Lotusville pool on Adams Road in Lotusville, KZN.
“They questioned him regarding the gazebo in his possession.
“He confirmed that the two men were policemen who had previously apprehended him for an unrelated crime.
“They asked him to load the gazebo into a white unbranded Nissan NP 200 which was parked next to a white VW Polo.
“They then advised him to leave. He believed that both were state vehicles.”
Balram said that reaction officers could not confirm this information.
He said that suspect had also been arrested by reaction officers in January 2023 after he was suspected to have broken into a house on Honeysuckle Place in Brindhaven.
During the arrest, officers conducted a background check which confirmed that he served a 24-month sentence in Westville Prison in 2012 for drug peddling.
“The suspect is currently detained at the Verulam SAPS,” Balram said.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala said Verulam police are investigating a case of burglary after it was alleged that on January 22, 2023, at Trevenen Road in Lotusville, a house was broken into and a gazebo was stolen.
“A 30-year-old suspect was arrested on Monday by Verulam police. He will appear before the Verulam Magistrate’s Court on January 25, 2023,” Gwala said.
“The allegations that the burglar was robbed by police officers are unfounded,” Gwala added.
Daily News