By Staff Reporter
POLOKWANE -A Zimbabwean and Malawian national arrested after found in possession of suspected stolen vehicle on N1 near Mall of the North in Polokwane on Sunday, 30 November 2025.
The SAPS Limpopo Tracking Team, together with external law enforcement partners including ShadowSecure Security, Tshimollo Security and Investigation, as well as Tracker SA, conducted an anti-smuggling operation in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The team received intelligence about a motor vehicle stolen in Gauteng and believed to be en route to Beitbridge along the N1 freeway. Members immediately began observation duties and soon spotted a vehicle matching the description travelling north on the N1 near Mall of the North in Polokwane.
The operational team brought the vehicle to a stop, and preliminary investigations confirmed that it had been stolen in Pretoria Central.
Two adult male occupants — a 38-year-old Zimbabwean national and a 43-year-old Malawian national — were arrested.
A case of possession of a suspected stolen motor vehicle has been opened at Polokwane SAPS. The suspects are expected to appear before the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 2 December 2025.
The recovered vehicle, a Toyota Corolla Cross GR valued at approximately R600,000, has been seized.
The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, has commended the swift response of multi-disciplinary teams that led to the interception of a stolen vehicle and the arrest of two suspects.
Hadebe praised the continued cooperation between the police, private security partners, and other stakeholders in the ongoing fight against vehicle smuggling within the province and across national borders.
