Pretoria – A 33-year-old man appeared briefly before the eMalahleni Magistrate’s Court after he was allegedly found with nine different kinds of unlicensed firearms, with 617 live rounds.
Police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala said Martin Frederik Nelson was granted bail of R3 000 and was scheduled to return to court on April 10.
“His arrest came after police reacted to a tip-off from the community about a man allegedly acting irresponsibly with firearms in his possession,” Mohlala said.
“According to the whistle-blowers, the suspect allegedly threatened people with firearms and appeared intoxicated. On police arrival at his residence, he was allegedly found with two firearms, a revolver and a rifle next to him.
“Police searched the house whereby seven rifles, two shotguns, one revolver, one pistol and the said ammunition were found in his possession”.
Mohlala said preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect had four firearms registered under his name, but only two firearms had valid licences.
“Seven of the firearms were reportedly inherited from his father, but there were no licences obtained by the suspect,” Mohlala said.
Acting provincial commissioner of SAPS in Mpumalanga, Major-General Zeph Mkhwanazi has commended community members for alerting police about the “weird behaviour” displayed by the suspect.
Mkhwanazi also commented on the “swift response” by police officers, which resulted in the arrest as well as confiscation of the firearms and ammunition.
In December, a 62-year-old was arrested for allegedly pointing a firearm, unlawful possession of an R5 assault rifle and its ammunition.
“According to information, a team of investigators successfully traced the suspect who was sought for pointing of firearm in Santigo Farm, Barberton, on Wednesday December 7, 2022,” Mohlala said.
He allegedly pointed a firearm at someone on Monday, December 5.
When the police arrived at the farm, the suspect reportedly had an R5 assault rifle hanging over his shoulder.
The man was disarmed and two R5 live rounds were reportedly found in his possession. Another round was loaded in the magazine.
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