A suspect linked to a series of cash-in-transit (CIT) robberies was fatally shot in a dramatic shootout with police in Umhlanga on Thursday afternoon. The suspect, wanted for his role in the violent heists, was reportedly a passenger in a vehicle traveling southbound on the M4. KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Robert Netshuinda confirmed that authorities received intelligence about the suspect’s whereabouts and quickly intercepted the vehicle at the Lighthouse Road off-ramp.
As the police approached the vehicle, the suspect exited and opened fire on the officers. This led to an intense exchange of gunfire, during which the suspect was fatally wounded. The police have since opened a case of attempted murder on a police official following the incident.
Earlier this month, another CIT heist had already drawn significant attention when it brought traffic on the N2 to a halt for several hours. In the chaos of the robbery, a woman was tragically killed by the fleeing suspects in the Chatsworth area. The police, however, managed to track down the criminals later that day in the Berea area of Durban. During a confrontation, one suspect was killed in a shootout with officers, while another, who had sustained gunshot wounds, was taken to the hospital for treatment.
In the aftermath of the CIT heist, police discovered one of the suspects’ vehicles abandoned with what appeared to be money bags inside, further linking the suspects to the robbery. The ongoing investigation into the crime and the deadly shootout has drawn attention to the escalating danger posed by cash-in-transit heists in the region.
