'Sick' East London SBV cash-in-transit robbers escape from custody

Two East London SBV cash-in-transit security guards who applied for “sick leave” and were later arrested while robbing a Fidelity cash truck in Whittlesea in 2018, have escaped from police custody with a third accomplice and another prisoner.

The SBV guards are Odwa Siqanqalala, 28, Lundi Mzimkhulu, 31, and his twin brother Mzuvukile Mzimkhulu, who worked for Komga Alarms as a security guard in Komga.

The fourth escapee, who was not part of the cash-in-transit  gang, is Mbeko Sturmaan, 33, who is facing rape charges.

SBV and Komga Alarms confirmed to DispatchLIVE that the suspects had worked for the companies.

Siqanqalala and the Mzimkhulu twins were arrested near Whittlesea on Friday, November 30, 2018, following a heavy exchange of gunfire with the police and Fidelity guards.

One bystander and a Fidelity guard were also shot and wounded during the attack, Komani police spokesperson Captain Namhla Mdleleni said at the time.

The three had pounced on the Fidelity guards while they were loading cash into a First National Bank ATM in Whittlesea.

The suspects had allegedly used an R5 assault rifle and a 9mm parabellum to disarm a security guard of his work R5 and robbed the guards of the cash – which they later dumped during the gunfight, the Dispatch reported at the time.

The police have launched a manhunt for the four escapees, said Eastern Cape Provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Thembinkosi Kinana.

Kinana said: “According to the report, the four suspects were to be transported to the court from Whittlesea when they seized firearms and Police Vehicle before escaping. The police vehicle was later found abandoned in the vicinity of Dongwe. However, the two firearms could not be found at the time.”

Kinana said no injuries were reported during the incident. “The members of the community are warned not to attempt to apprehend these criminals as they are believed to be very dangerous and armed.”

He said a case of escaping from lawful custody, robbery and theft of motor vehicle have been registered in Whittlesea for investigation.

Kinana said anyone with information relating to the whereabouts of the wanted suspects should contact the nearest police station or call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.

A report on the incident, circulated among SBV staff and which DispatchLIVE has seen, read that one of the guards had sustained a gunshot wound on his lower right arm and his 31-year-old Komga Alarms brother was shot in the right buttock.

The second SBV guard, aged 28, took bullets in the left arm and left leg. The message also alleges that a provisional intelligence report revealed that one of the guards had also been linked to an earlier robbery of a Fidelity van in Ncgobo in November.