Police intercepted two suspected cross-border car thieves along the N1 in Limpopo after a high-speed anti-smuggling operation near Polokwane on Sunday.
The officers recovered a stolen Toyota Corolla worth at least R600 000. The suspects allegedly aimed to smuggle the car into Zimbabwe.
Syndicates linked to regional criminal networks
Officers intercepted the suspects, a 40-year-old Malawian and a 38-year-old Zimbabwean as they intensified their clampdown on vehicle-smuggling syndicates.
Investigators believe the two belong to well-coordinated cross-border smuggling networks. The alleged networks involve South Africans, Batswana, Basotho, Mozambicans, Malawians and Zimbabweans who specialise in stealing vehicles for export.
Some members also run insurance-fraud scams in which car owners quietly sell their vehicles to the criminals and later report them stolen to claim insurance payouts.
SAPS praises swift cross-border coordination
Limpopo SAPS spokesperson Colonel Malasela Ledwaba said the arrests came after swift coordination between several units. He noted that Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe had praised the teams for responding quickly.
“The multi-disciplinary teams intercepted the reported stolen vehicle and arrested two suspects on Sunday, 30 November 2025,” said Col Ledwaba.
He added that members of the SAPS Limpopo Tracking Team, Shadow Secure Security, Tshimollo Security and Tracker SA were conducting an anti-smuggling operation when they received intelligence about a stolen vehicle travelling from Gauteng toward Beitbridge along the N1.
The team maintained surveillance until the Toyota Corolla Cross GR matching the alert appeared near Mall of the North.
Officers pulled the vehicle over and immediately confirmed that it had been stolen in Pretoria Central.
Police have opened a case of possession of a suspected stolen motor vehicle in Polokwane. The two suspects are expected to appear in the Polokwane Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
