PORT ELIZABETH - KLEINSKOOL GANG MEMBER GETS 6 YEAR SENTENCE FOR ILLEGAL FIREARM & AMMUNITION

A gang affiliate was today sentenced in the Port Elizabeth Regional Court to six (6) years imprisonment for the possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

On 13 December 2015, members of the Tactical Response Team responded to a complaint in Wimmer Street, Kleinskool regarding a suspect in possession of a firearm. The accused, Ruwayne Marx alias Tolla, was arrested with a Lugar pistol and 13 rounds of ammunition in his possession.

He was convicted on 12 September 2016 and sentenced today.

The continued recovery and seizure of firearms is a direct result of intensified crime prevention operations, intelligence collection, police visibility and the efforts of the men and women in blue who work daily to ensure that illegal and unlicensed firearms are taken out of circulation and out of the hands of criminal elements.

Firearms are at the centre of many incidents involving serious and violent crime in the Northern areas of Port Elizabeth. Sentences such as this send out a strong message to criminals that, if found in possession of an unlicensed firearm, they will be prosecuted and face imprisonment.

Every citizen has a contribution to make in the fight against crime and the SAPS urges the communities to blow the whistle on persons in possession of stolen or illegal firearms. Since March 2016, Operation Lockdown has confiscated 83 firearms in the areas of Bethelsdorp and Gelvandale.

VIA - saps.gov.za