Minister of Police, General Bheki Cele and the management of the South African Police Service (SAPS) led by National Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola on Wednesday, 17 April 2024 headed to Nquthu in the Umzinyathi municipality in KwaZulu-Natal in an effort to restore law and order in a rural community plagued by violent assassinations.
The police top brass held in-depth and lengthy discussions with the local traditional leadership and representatives of families that are said to be involved in long standing feud that has claimed ten lives, including women and children since 2022.
The feud has also resulted in the displacement of families who have abandoned their homes; and has left scores of community members living in fear.
In an effort to bring stability to the area and arrest those behind the spate of murders including acts of violence and intimidation, an intervention team will be deployed to Nquthu to stabilise the area, arrest those responsible for the attacks and combat the proliferation of firearms in the area.
While no arrests have been made so far for the murders, one murder suspect was shot and killed after shooting at the police during his arrest earlier in the month.
Following the meeting with traditional leaders and the police. Minister Cele addressed the Nquthu community; calling on them to work with the police, rather than against them.
“We are deploying this high level team to clean up this area, they will be here to deal with ruthless criminals that kill women and children without a shred of remorse. This team will not be selective nor will it be kind to criminals, no matter what party or organisation they belong to or family they come from. They will use all that is at their disposal to ensure there is justice for those killed as well as track and trace firearms that are in the wrong hands.” concluded Cele.
The Intervention team which will be assembled and deployed within the coming days, will consist of seasoned detectives to investigate the murder cases and make arrests. The investigations will be supported by the deployment of tactical response teams which will be stationed in the area to track down the illegal firearms that have brought fear to the rural community.
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Lirandzu Themba
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