South Africa. Ammunition stolen during Durban looting could be in criminals’ hands: ISS

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South Africa. Ammunition stolen during Durban looting could be in criminals’ hands: ISS

11:02 CAT | 22 Jul 2021

FILE - People loot an area near a burning warehouse in Durban, South Africa, July 14. [File photo: Reuters]

The Institute of Security Studies says the 1.5 one million rounds of ammunition stolen during last week’s looting in Durban could already be in the hands of criminals.

The ammunition was looted from a shipping container at a depot in Prospecton in the south of Durban.

Senior Researcher at the Institute for Security Studies Johan Burger says police must do everything in their power to recover the stolen ammunition before it is too late.

“It is of course worrying that such a large amount of ammunition, what happened to it at the time we are facing so much violence. There are real concerns that the ammunition that went missing could still be used during the act of criminality and more violence. But whatever was not recovered probably are in the hands of criminals and this could be used in more violence.”

On Wednesday, a police operation aimed at recovering some of the allegedly stolen items from the unrest last week took place in Springfield.

eThekwin Metro Police led the operation, supported by members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), as outlined in the video below:

Firearms recovered in Joburg

Meanwhile, Police in the City of Johannesburg during the past weekend recovered firearms, ammunition for AK47 assault rifles, drugs and looted items during an overnight operation called ‘Reclaim the Loot’.

Acting provincial commissioner Tommy Ntombeni said they focussed on areas adjacent to the hotspots where the most looting took place.

More than 20 people were arrested in Alexandra, Soweto and Cleveland.

Source: SABC