Durban - Three of the eleven suspects arrested last week for their alleged involvement in the robbery of the Willowton Group’s storage warehouse in Gauteng, have been let go from police custody, Gauteng police confirmed on Tuesday.
Regional police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo said the three suspects were released because they could not be linked to the robbery.
Meanwhile, the other eight suspects sat before the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court and were remanded in custody after Monday’s appearance.
“We can confirm that three of the arrested suspects were released after they could not be linked, while the other eight suspects appeared before Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
“The suspects were remanded in custody and expected back in court on Thursday, 13 October, for a formal bail application,” Masonda told IOL.
The eight suspects are charged with business robbery and possession of presumed stolen property.
Furthermore, the Willowton Group announced on Monday that one more suspect had been arrested while another batch of stolen oil was found.
“This time, a pallet of Sunfoil sunflower oil 2-litre stock was recovered in a foreign-owned superette in the Vaal Triangle region, which was identified by the stolen good batch codes,” the group said.
Eleven suspects were arrested last Wednesday, after they were allegedly caught off-loading stolen Sunfoil oil into a business premises in Vanderbijlpark.
Both Willowton and the police confirmed that an armed robbery took place at the company’s warehouse in Kempton Park.
Armed men stormed the warehouse, held up the employees and loaded three trucks with a large quantity of Sunfoil 2L oil before fleeing the scene.
Shortly after, police and Willowton’s security partner tracked down one of the trucks to a business premises Vanderbijlpark.
One of the eleven suspects arrested last Wednesday, was the driver of the truck who transported the stolen oil from Willowton’s off-site warehouse to the premises in Vanderbijlpark.
IOL