The police fatally shot three suspected blue light gang members on the N3 between Villiers and Heidleburg in Mpumalanga last night. One of the suspects escaped on foot during the high-speed chase. The gang which wears police uniform and stops vehicles before kidnapping and robbing occupants, has been terrorising motorists for months. 

A HIGH-SPEED CHASE

Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili said information was received last night about a gang, that allegedly committed blue light robberies on the N3 using a double cab bakkie. "A multidisciplinary team was mobilised and traced the suspects to N3 highway, Grootvlei in Mpumalanga. The vehicle was spotted with blue lights on and when the suspects saw the police, they sped away, resulting in a high-speed chase towards Zonkizizwe in Ekurhuleni," Muridili said. She added that the suspects started shooting at the police and the men of the law retaliated. As a result, three suspects were fatally shot and one managed to flee the scene on foot. "The police seized two unlicensed firearms and ammunition, blue lights as well as the suspect's vehicle," Muridili said that the multidisciplinary team included, SAPS national head office counter intelligence, Secunda crime intelligence, Gauteng tactical response team, Gauteng anti-gang unit, DPC tracking team, Johannesburg K9, CAP specialised operations and other private security companies combed the crime scene for more evidence while the vehicle was taken to for further analysis.

THE BLUE LIGHT GANG TERROR

The gang has been terrorising motorists for months along the N3 Highway by robbing them of their belongings. This is the same highway that transport minister, Sindisiwe Chikunga, was robbed last year November between Heidelberg and Vosloorus. The Minister said at the time that she and her security detail had a puncture with the wheel severely damaged. "I was inside the car because the bodyguards had to change the tyre and I heard commotion outside. The bodyguards were putting bags and the damaged tyre in the car, when the robbery happened. I tried making a call and one of the robbers opened the car door and pointed a gun at my head," she said. The minister added that she was ordered out of the car and made to sit outside before the robbers demanded money.

In February, a medical doctor was hijacked and robbed of his belongings while driving on the same highway near Vosloorus. The police said that the doctor had been driving on the N3 from Newcastle to Johannesburg when he was stopped by a white double cab with blue lights, three of the five men were wearing police uniform. The suspects took him into a maize field where they robbed him of his luxury vehicle as well as jewellery, medical equipment and an undisclosed amount of cash. He was also held captive while others went to an ATM to withdraw money from his account. He was left in the maize field and helped by other motorists.