Cops have busted four skelms who stole meat worth a whopping R500 000.
Police say the four suspects are part of a syndicate who defraud meat suppliers from Kimberley to Cape Town.
According to a report by Metro Police, the men were busted by the Camera Response Unit in Manenberg on Thursday morning.
Metro police spokesperson, Superintendent Ruth Solomons, says: “They spotted the truck, accompanied by a white VW Polo, and pulled over the vehicles at the corner of Turfhall and Govan Mbeki Roads.
“Officers found 177 whole lambs and 55 boxes of lamb liver in the truck, and two more lambs in the car. The goods have an estimated value of half a million rand.
“The suspects, aged between 30 and 37, could not account for how they came to be in possession of the meat.”
Manenberg police station commander, Brigadier Sanele Zama, says the case was assigned to ace detective Sergeant Daryl van Noie.
“It was discovered that these men are part of a meat syndicate who stole from a supplier in Kimberley.”
Zama explains that a former employee of the meat supplier submitted fraudulent documents for an order of 200 whole lambs worth R465 000 and 20 boxes of liver worth R54 000.
“The quote looked legit and he even used a cash and carry (business) in Cape Town that had an existing account with the supplier.
“The meat was sent and when the driver arrived, he was stopped by the man who allegedly ordered the meat,” he says.
“They came up with some story and got the guy to drop off the stock at a parking lot in Elsies.
“They then hired a Zimbabwean driver to transfer the goods to his truck and told him to deliver it at various places like Bellville, Charlesville, Vangate Mall and Mitchells Plain.”
Zama says the skelms left the Zimbabwean driver alone in the truck and drove ahead of him in a white VW Polo.
“They thought if they get pulled over and they are in the truck, they will be arrested but the Zimbabwean driver became suspicious as he was alone in the truck. He called the police and informed them of what was happening...”
He says during the arrest, cops found two lambs in the Polo’s boot.
The suspects will appear in the Athlone Magistrates’ Court today on charges of possession of stolen property and theft.