A group of five suspects accused of torching trucks in Mpumalanga will appear before the Ermerlo magistrate’s court on Thursday for their bail application.
The group face charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances, malicious damage to property, and attempted murder. They were remanded in custody until their next appearance.
During their first appearance, it was revealed that out of the five accused, four of them are truck drivers and one is a former truck driver.
It is alleged that they are disgruntled truck drivers who resorted to arson to spite their employers. They told the court that the police assaulted them brutally when they were apprehended.
At the time, Vusi Shongwe, MEC for community safety in Mpumalanga, said the provincial government is confident that the suspects are the ones who committed the crime . He said they were identified from the cameras on the N4 and N2 between Piet Retief and Ermelo.
“According to the police and the information they have, these are the correct suspects. We are confident in the work of the police and we trust that they have arrested the right people,” said Shongwe.
Over 20 trucks were torched between Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Kwa-Zulu Natal.
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