Truck Arson Attacks: Community Collaboration Leads to Arrest of Suspect as Total Arrests Rise to 3

• Another man linked to the truck arson attacks in Mpumalanga has been arrested, bringing the total number of arrests to three
• Community members played a crucial role in assisting a security company and the police in tracking down one of the suspects
• The suspects are expected to appear in court and face charges of malicious damage to property

MPUMALANGA - The Mpumalanga police have arrested another person linked to the truck arson attacks on the N2 between Piet Retief and Ermelo.

The man was arrested on Thursday, 13 July, which brings the total number of arrests to three, reports The Citizen. The two other suspects were also arrested on Thursday.

In a statement by the national police spokesperson, all three suspects are expected to appear at Ermelo Magistrate’s Court on Monday. The third suspect was arrested in Emalahleni, Mpumalanga.

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They all face charges for malicious damage to property.

Community members help police catch a suspect

According to SowetanLIVE, community members helped a security company and the police track down one of the suspects linked to the truck torchings.

Images of the man were shared on WhatsApp groups and social media, which led the private security firm Anti-Crime Security Unit to his house in Luneburg farm outside Piet Retief.

The security company's operations manager Bester Maree said they waited for the man to return home from around midnight on Thursday and finally arrived between 1 and 2am.

The suspect was then handed over to the police at around 3am. He reportedly worked as a truck driver for eight years and a coal company in Middleburg.

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2 People arrested in connection to the truck arson attacks in Mpumalanga, South Africans want to see suspects

Over 20 trucks have been set alight since the weekend in Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

More trucks set on fire in Gauteng and Mpumalanga, sparking calls for police escort from industry role players

Briefly News previously reported that trucks in South Africa are under siege, and there seems to be no end in sight after more trucks were set on fire in Gauteng and Mpumalanga.

A truck was torched on the R59 route in Gauteng, and another three were set alight in Mpumalanga. At least 20 trucks have been set on fire in the last four days.

Five trucks were torched in KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo on Monday, 10 July. 11 were set alight over the weekend, six in KwaZulu-Natal on Saturday, 8 July and five in Mpumalanga on Sunday evening, 9 July, News24 reported.

Source: Briefly News