The Hawks arrested a member of the Port Elizabeth K-9 unit in connection with an armed robbery in Thornhill earlier this month.
Police spokesperson, lieutenant-colonel Priscilla Naidu says the 29 year old constable was arrested on Wednesday morning on charges of armed robbery and vehicle hijacking.
"It is alleged that on Sunday, 5/02 at about 23:10, four to five men were dropped off near a local tavern in Thornhill by a police vehicle. The men then walked to the tavern and accosted a man seated in his Toyota Corolla," Naidu said.
She said "the man was threatened at gunpoint and pulled out of his vehicle. He was assaulted and his keys taken from him. The man was then taken to the tavern and was used by the men to summon the owner. The man is known to the tavern owner. When she opened the door, the men rushed in. The woman was robbed of R5000 in cash and four cell phones. She was also assaulted by the men."
"The men then left the house and some got into the Toyota Corolla while it is alleged that others got into the police vehicle parked nearby. Witnesses claimed that the police vehicle was a K9 unit vehicle from Port Elizabeth. The Toyota Corolla was found abandoned on a gravel farm road in Sunnyside in Thornhill," Naidu added.
She says the policeman will appear in court on Friday and the search for the remaining suspects is still underway
Naidu says police officials "are expected to be role models as law enforcement officials but when they dabble in criminal activity, it is only a matter of time before their number comes up and they find themselves on the other side of the cell doors."
She has also urged members of the community to report any criminal activity by police to the anti-corruption hotline 0800 701 701 for the anonymous Crime Stop number 08600 10111.
