Three men have been arrested in Springs after they were allegedly found in possession of unlicensed firearms and an undisclosed amount of money, Ekurhuleni metro police said on Tuesday.
EMPD spokesperson Kobeli Mokheseng said the men were travelling in a Toyota Fortuner on the N17 towards Daggafontein on Monday morning when they were stopped by the public order policing unit.
Officers spotted six men in the vehicle.
The driver, a man in his mid-40s, claimed he was a teacher and the owner of the car.
He said while the driver explained to officers that he had forgotten his driver's licence at home, a 9mm CZ firearm and 15 live rounds of ammunition fell out when three men exited the vehicle.
The men opened fire on the officers and fled in the direction of a nearby informal settlement.
Officers retaliated, shooting and wounding three of the men, aged between 35 and 40.
Police found a sports bag with a large amount of money in the boot of the car.
"It is not clear at this stage why they were travelling with a large amount of cash, but we suspect it was illegally obtained."
The trio was taken to hospital under police guard. They were charged with attempted murder and being in possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition.
No officers were injured during the shooting.
The three other suspects are still at large.
