Silver Audi, a sudden turn, and a pistol under the driver's seat: three arrested in Bloemfontein CBD

Three people were arrested in the Bloemfontein central business district on Saturday, 11 October 2026, after police stopped a car in Douglas Street and found a pistol hidden under the driver’s seat.

The South African Police Service says the arrests were made by members of Parkroad Crime Prevention Shift C during stop and search actions under the Safer Festive Season Operation Shanela II. The three are two South African males aged 36 and 40, and a 24-year-old South African female.

According to the police statement, the members noticed a silver Audi that took a sudden turn without using its indicator lights. The vehicle was stopped and searched.

A magazine loaded with live ammunition was found in the driver’s possession, and a pistol was found hidden underneath the driver’s seat, police say. None of the occupants could account for the firearm or produce a valid firearm licence or a permit to possess ammunition, the statement reads.

All three were arrested for possession of an unlicensed firearm and illegal possession of live ammunition. They are expected to appear before the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court soon.

The Enquirer has not independently verified the account and is reporting the details as SAPS states them. The statement does not name the three arrested, does not give a date for the court appearance, and does not say whether the occupants have legal representation or have been asked to plead.

The operation is one of the stop and search actions SAPS runs in the CBD, where the force’s account of the weekend is a car, a turn without an indicator, and a search that ended in three arrests.

The source is the South African Police Service media statement, “Three suspects arrested for possession of unlicensed firearm and ammunition in Bloemfontein CBD”, issued by the Office of the Provincial Commissioner, Free State: https://www.saps.gov.za/newsroom/msspeechdetail.php?nid=71755