Suspects sought for execution of three men

A reward of R50 000 has been made available by the South African Police Service (SAPS) Thabong cluster commander, Major General Lerato Molale, to anyone who will provide information that can lead to the arrest of two men who are wanted for the murders of three man on Thursday last week.

“The reason for the reward is because this is an urgent matter. The manner in which these two suspects executed this robbery indicates to us that they are serious in their mission and will not stop until they get what they want. Therefore we appeal to the community at large to help us with this case before anyone else gets hurt,” said Molale.

According to police spokesperson, Sergeant Mamello Macheoane, three males between the ages of 24 and 38 years were shot at close range in execution-style, each with one bullet at the back of the head. The incident took place in the late hours on the night of February 14, 2013, at about 21:00 near the road leading from Welkom to Virginia.

“It is alleged that five male victims were on their way to collect scrap metals in Welkom near the St Helena mines, when they were approached by two unknown suspects. The two armed suspects allegedly instructed them to lie down on the ground and demanded money from each one of them.

“The fifth victim, who managed to escape unharmed, alleged that when they could not provide the suspects with any money, the other victims were each shot with one bullet in the back of the head. He managed to notify the Bronville SAPS straight away. According to the victim both suspects were Sesotho-speaking with a deep accent. The suspects fled the scene on foot,” said Macheoane.

He said the fourth victim got seriously injured from the incident and was therefore rushed to a hospital in Bloemfontein.

A case of murder and attempted was registered at the Bronville SAPS and investigations still continue.

Anyone with information relating to this can contact Warrant Officer Schalk Steyn of the Bronville detective unit on 073 887 7543 or promptly report it to the Bronville SAPS.