One farm attack suspect was killed and two others arrested in a car chase and shoot-out with police in Motherwell on Tuesday morning.
The incident followed just hours after an attack on two elderly women on their farm Ou Plaas at Alexandria between Port Elizabeth and Kenton.
According to police, the women aged 72 and 76 years were attacked inside their home and held hostage for two hours. The attack started at around 2.30am and the suspects fled to Port Elizabeth at around 4.30am.
Within an hour, Port Elizabeth police spotted the victims' Isuzu bakkie heading towards Motherwell on the Addo Road.
Police spokesman Captain Andre Beetge said that three men had entered the house after breaking in via the laundry room of the farmhouse.
“The men went to the bedrooms and woke two ladies who live there. They were then threatened and forced out of bed then tied to chairs with cable ties. The suspects then ransacked the house and found the safe keys,” he said.
“After a short while, the men found the safe and stole money. They also found a revolver in the woman's bedroom, she did not managed to grab the weapon in time to use it.”
Beetge said after the men ransacked the house, they stole the farm's Isuzu bakkie and fled at around 4.30am.
“By about 5.30am the bakkie was spotted by Flying Squad on the R355 Addo Road near the Monument Crossing. A car chase ensued and the suspects failed to stop,” he said.
In an attempt to evade arrest, the suspects drove the bakkie into Siqwane Street in Motherwell but then turned into a dead-end side street where the vehicle stopped in front of a house.
Beetge said that as the suspects left the vehicle there was a confrontation with police. “At this stage it is unknown how many shots were fired. The scene is still active. I can confirm that one suspect is dead and two arrested.”
He said the two men arrested were 37 and 50 years old. “The men will be questioned by detectives at a later stage."
As the shooting involved a police official, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) investigators are also en route to the crime scene.
"Forensics and detectives are on the scene," Beetge said.
The two men arrested are due to appear in the Alexandria Magistrates Court on Thursday.