Port Elizabeth delivery driver arrested for stealing stock

A truck driver was caught while allegedly stealing stock from the SPAR truck he was driving while doing  deliveries  across the province on Tuesday.

The incident led to the driver, and two other men being arrested after attempting to elude police.

The bust happened in Dedisa Road near Coega at about 6.30pm when a passing police vehicle spotted the truck parked by the side of the road and three men seemingly loading items into a nearby car.

Officials have since warned companies that they have seen a spike in false hijackings related to delivery vehicles.

Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said the officials turned their car around to inspect what was happening, at which point the men allegedly tried to get away in the truck and vehicle.

“A short pursuit happened but the police members managed to stop both vehicles.

“As the vehicles stopped all were arrested,” he said.

“After investigation, police found stolen items from the truck inside the car.”

Beetge confirmed the truck driver was en route to do deliveries.

“The other two men arrived in the vehicle and all three [allegedly] began offloading the items from the truck into the car.”

Items found in the car included infant formula, boxes of coffee and 50 litres of diesel  believed to have been siphoned from the truck.

The incident comes in the wake of a series of hijackings of delivery vehicles across the Bay.

Since January, police estimate they have dealt with more than 20 delivery vehicle hijackings.

“We have picked up a pattern where some drivers are working in cahoots with gangs to steal the goods and then claim to be a victim of a hijacking.

“While in some cases this is true, there are cases where we have ascertained that it was an inside job,” Beetge said.

“We have already made several arrests where drivers had plotted the robbery or hijacking.

“In these cases, the drivers facilitate the theft of the goods and then later come to the police station saying  they had either been robbed or hijacked.”

Beetge called on companies to monitor their vehicles’ tracking systems as well as to have contingency plans for when drivers failed to arrive at their set location within a specific period.

“There are ways to mitigate and ensure quick response to possible hijacking scenarios.

“Detectives are liaising with several delivery companies to assist with developing plans to mitigate the risk,” he said.

In most cases, the delivery vehicle or truck is hijacked and then found abandoned a short while later.

“In all the cases, the stock is the target,” Beetge said.

“Several of these incidents happen in daylight near or outside shopping centres.”

The three suspects, aged between 24-47 years, will appear in the Motherwell Magistrate’s Court on Thursday for possession of stolen property.