In an anti-terror raid by the Hawks, a Gauteng couple has been arrested for allegedly having explosive devices.
Hawks officers swooped on two houses in Azaadville on Saturday and confiscated a stun grenade and rounds of ammunition, as well as CDs, documents and even a matric pupil’s school books, before busting two more people.
It’s understood the suspects were planning to fly to Syria.
Locals have denied people in the suburb support Islamic State (Isis).
Yousha Tayob, representing the two affected families, told the Weekend Argus the Hawks warrants “indicated it was all terror-related”.
The Hawks had seized “whatever they presumed to be inflammatory terrorist items”.
Azaadville was in the news in 2014, when a group intent on joining Isis had allegedly travelled to the town.
On Saturday, while the Azaadville houses were being searched, a third house in Florida, Gauteng, was also raided.
The SABC reported a witness at the Florida scene saw snipers stationed on his rooftop.
Tayob said he was aware of the Florida raid, but he addressed only the raids in Azaadville.
He says the couple arrested was expected to appear in court today, and will face a Schedule 6 offence, which was regarded as “extremely serious”.
Tayob said the male suspect had obtained the stun grenade when he was a member of the local community police forum, while the ammunition had been used for hunting, with legal firearms.
National Hawks spokesman Hangwani Mulaudzi said the matter was “very sensitive”.
“We are not at liberty to comment at this stage,” he said.