Men who allegedly robbed taxi driver arrested

Two men have been arrested after allegedly robbing a taxi driver in Port Elizabeth.

Police spokesman Colonel Priscilla Naidu said: “A taxi driver and his conductor were robbed by three men while they were driving in Stanford Road near Jacksonville at about 4:45pm on Tuesday.

“All three [robbers] were posing as passengers. 

“The three suspects got in at Chatty extension 12. While the driver was driving his route, one of the suspects pointed a firearm him and demanded money.

“The other two suspects pointed firearms at the conductor and removed cash from his pockets,” she said.

“A small amount of money and a cellphone was also taken from the cubbyhole of the taxi.”

Naidu said while the robbery was underway, the taxi driver swerved into oncoming traffic and halted in the road.

“The driver then jumped out and ran away while the suspects also exited the vehicle and fled,” she said.

Patrolling police officials saw the minibus vehicle swerve and stopped to see what was happening.

“The police officials gave chase leading to two of the suspects being arrested.”

Naidu said one of the suspects ran home and was found hiding in the wardrobe of his Anise Street house while the other was found hiding between houses in Appel Street in Jacksonville.

Asked if any of the firearms were recovered Naidu said it was suspected that the weapons had been thrown away during the foot pursuit.

The third suspect is still at large.

“The suspects are well-known to the complainant [the taxi driver] and police will be profiling them with possible links to other cases,” she said.

The arrests came on the back of increased manpower by the Visible Gang Intervention Team and Mount Road Cluster Operational Command Centre targeting crime in the Northern areas.

Mount Road Cluster Commander Major General Thembisile Patekile applauded the team for their quick response.

“We cannot allow these criminals to dominate our space and instill fear in our citizens.

“We will continue with our high density patrols and operations in these areas to ensure the community’s safety,” he said. 

Both men, aged 23 and 26, will appear in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate's Court on Thursday.