The police made a major breakthrough when four suspects were arrested in Kwa-Mhlanga in the Mpumalanga province on 5 November. Two of the suspects are linked to the murder of police officer, Lt-Col Freddy Masuvhelele. The late police officer had been shot and killed at his business premises in Malonga, Vuwani on 8 October this year.
Masuvhelele (58) was attached to the police in Limpopo's Intelligence Unit and owner of Masuvhelele Enterprise.
On the day of the incident, three unknown men arrived at Masuvhelele's convenience shop (which is on the same premises as his house). Two went into the shop, while the third one stood outside, watching Masuvhelele, who had been tending to his chickens upon arriving home. The two men inside approached the till, where Masuvhelele's two children worked, pretending to buy cigarettes. When they produced a gun and pointed it at the children, the children ran out of the shop. The robbers fired shots in their direction, but did not hit them. At the same time, the man outside shot and killed Masuvhelele. The assailants made off with an undisclosed amount of cash and a cell phone and fled the scene in a white VW Polo.
According to provincial police spokesperson Motlafela Mojapelo the suspects had also been terrorising communities and businesses in the Vhembe and Mopani Districts. They were linked to business robberies, car-jackings, rapes, murder and theft.
Mojapelo said that members of the provincial tracking team and the provincial investigations unit, with assistance from Tracker South Africa, received information that led them to Kwa-Mhlanga in Mpumalanga. On arrival, the suspects were cornered at their hideout and allegedly started shooting at the police. The police returned fire and one suspect, aged 31, was shot and seriously injured. The other three, aged between 24 and 31, were apprehended.
According to Mojapelo, the suspects allegedly hijacked a couple at Mashamba village in the Waterval policing area on the day before Masuvhelele's murder. They shot the man and robbed the couple of their cell phones and cash. They then drove off with the couple - the man shoved inside the trunk of the car and the woman handcuffed. On the same day, they targeted another couple. They also hi-jacked this couple, leaving the first couple behind. They later shot and killed the man.
The suspects continued with their hijacking and robbery sprees and in the process reportedly shot and injured a female traffic officer. Mojapelo said that during the arrest and search, police recovered three 9mm pistols, 500 rounds of live ammunition, police handcuffs and pepper spray as well as cell phones and car keys. He said that the preliminary investigations revealed that one of the firearms belonged to a police officer and was reported stolen in Giyani earlier this year.
The suspects will soon appear in various magistrate's courts in the Vhembe and Mopani District on charges ranging from murder, rape, car-jacking, business robbery, theft and attempted murder. They had to first appear before the Mpumalanga authorities on charges of possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, possession of suspected stolen properties, attempted murder and murder. The outcome was still pending at the time of going to press.
Masuvhelele's younger brother, Thabelo Masuvhelele, said the family members are very relieved that the suspects had been caught. "We are happy that the police have finally arrested the suspects because nobody felt safe after what had happened," he said.