A team of investigators assigned to probe the murder of late Collins Chabane Municipality mayor, Moses Maluleke, has positively linked a suspect to the killing, says the South African Police Service (SAPS).

The suspect was recently arrested along with three other people nabbed for a spate of serious crimes.

This linkage brings the total number of suspects arrested for the murder of the Mayor to five, said Limpopo SAPS spokesperson, Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo.

The Mayor was shot and killed at his home on 21 July 2022. His 18-year-old son was also shot and injured during the incident.

Mojapelo said: “The Vhembe Trio Crimes Task Team received information about the location of the suspects who were committing a spate of business robberies, carjackings, murders, rapes and burglaries committed in Thohoyandou, Mphephu, Siloam, Vuwani and Levubu policing areas.

“The information was operationalised, which led the team to different locations at Ha-Mutodi, Duthuni, Shayandima and Thohoyandou Block F, where the four suspects were arrested.”

The suspects, aged between 21 and 44, were soon after their arrests subjected to further probes, which positively linked the 30 year-old to the murder of the Mayor.

“The probe also linked the same suspect to the murder of a Thohoyandou Lawyer, Mr Mangwadu, who was attached to the Legal Aid, was shot and killed in January 2022 when entering his home,” he said.

The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, commended the team for conducting a well-coordinated operation that led to the arrests.

She also hailed the investigators for their meticulous investigations that positively linked one of the suspects to the murder of the Mayor.

The suspect will today appear in Malamulele Magistrate Court facing a charge of murder. Meanwhile, the other four accused are scheduled to appear in the same court on 19 September 2022. 

Source: South African Government News Agency