PRETORIA - Gauteng police chief Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela on Wednesday commended police officers in the province for the “hard work” that led to the arrest of several suspects and the recovery of six illegal firearms.

Provincial police spokesperson, Captain Kay Makhubele, said on Tuesday, an alleged taxi hit man was arrested before he could execute his work at Faraday taxi rank in Johannesburg. He was found with an unlicenced firearm.

“It is alleged that he was supposed to kill members of the taxi association in Johannesburg. Four other suspects were stopped in Germiston after police were following information of the car with false registration numbers.

"Police spotted the vehicle and followed it until they stopped it during the operation. It was discovered that the suspects [in the car] were bank followers,” said Makhubele.

“The suspects were using a Taxify car with false registration numbers. The suspects will be profiled to determine if they were involved in other crimes, and the vehicle was impounded.”