Crime
Police Minister Bheki Cele has released statistics on farm attacks and murders dating back to 2012, which show that while attacks have increased, the number of murders reported have decreased year-on-year. In a written response to a parliamentary question from the Freedom Front Plus’ Pieter Groenewald, Cele and National Police…
The grandmother of Poppie van der Merwe said she could finally rest after the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria sentenced the toddler’s killers, Louisa and Kobus Koekemoer, to life behind bars. Poppie was only three years old when she died in Brits in October 2016. She had been abused…
The KZN office of the auditor-general has stopped auditing the books of the eThekwini Metro and has recalled all its staff from the council after allegedly receiving a series of death threats, the provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional…
Critics have described the attack on the Imam Hussain Mosque in Ottawa, Verulam on Thursday as a “heinous attack” and “totally unjustified”. Three men stormed the mosque on Thursday afternoon, stabbing two people and slitting the throat of another man who died in hospital as a result of his extensive…
Parliament’s Select Committee on Social Services has decried the situation in the North West, where there are reports that protesters have been blocking the entrance to the Tshepong Hospital in Klerksdorp. News24 reported earlier on Wednesday that patients at the hospital were left stranded after angry protesters stormed in and forced…
Beijing – A knife-wielding man with a grudge killed seven middle school children and injured 12 others as they returned home in northern China on Friday, authorities said, in one of the deadliest such rampages in the country in recent years. The 28-year-old suspect was detained and the injured children…
She visited dark rooms filled with ceremonial candles and containers of muthi, performed numerous cleansing and healing rituals and spent more than half a million rand. All in the hope of getting help for recurring headaches and maybe finding love again. Instead Lerato Mfuthi* has been left with an even…
Western Cape police say they are making headway in their investigation into the murder of a woman on a farm outside Stilbaai, after arresting four suspects on Friday. Heila Killian, 63, was killed when five masked men shot her at a braai on a friend’s farm. The suspects then made…
Mbombela – Police are hunting for three men involved in the murder of a 73-year-old man at a farm in Charl Cilliers, near Secunda, on Friday night. Police spokesperson, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi, said the men had attacked the man and his family shortly after 22:00. “According to information, the man…
Cape Town – A Kimberley couple survived a vicious attack at their farm near the diamond city in the Northern Cape. Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) has suggested that there could be a political motive behind the incident. Provincial police spokesperson Captain Sergio Kock said four men entered the couple’s…
A farmer and his wife are recovering in hospital after a group of balaclava-clad men attacked them in their home in Reivilo, North West police said on Thursday. Christo, 52, and Lizelle Bosman, 46, were woken from their sleep in the early hours of Wednesday by seven or eight robbers,…
An armed gang are on the run after opening fire on a group of people on a farm outside Stilbaai, killing a 62-year-old woman, Southern Cape police said on Tuesday. The men, wearing balaclavas to conceal their faces, accosted two men and two women who were having a braai in…
Statistics compiled by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) were presented in the sentencing proceedings in the case against former Western Cape police commissioner Arno Lamoer and three others at the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday. IPID’s head of investigations Matthew Sesoko was asked to present the statistics at…
Two people have been arrested in connection with the murder of four people, including two teenagers and a child, who were shot dead at Brown’s Farm near Philippi in Cape Town, Western Cape police said on Sunday. “Our investigations into the ruthless killing led to the apprehension of two suspects,…
Mbombela – Police are hunting for three men involved in the murder of a 73-year-old man at a farm in Charl Cilliers, near Secunda, on Friday night. Police spokesperson, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi, said the men had attacked the man and his family shortly after 22:00. “According to information, the man…
Nelspruit – Police have launched a manhunt for two suspects who attacked and robbed a couple at a farm in White River, north of Nelspruit, in Mpumalanga. The two suspects allegedly robbed the couple of their vehicle, firearms, ammunition and a telescope on Saturday, said Colonel Mtsholi Bhembe on Monday.…
Durban – A 65-year-old farmer who fought off a bush knife-wielding attacker is nursing his wounds in hospital following a farm attack on his farm in Paddock, south of KwaZulu-Natal, police said on Friday. Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said the farmer heard his dog barking at about 22:50 on Thursday…
Pietermaritzburg – Two men have been convicted of murder, kidnapping and robbery with aggravating circumstances following a farm attack earlier this month in Eensgevonden in Vryheid, police said on Friday. Sibusiso Mbatha, 23, and Ayanda Mncube, 21, pleaded guilty to the all the charges in the High Court in Pietermaritzburg…
Pietermaritzburg – As tensions between ANC factions in the Moses Mabhida region escalate to the point where there are fears that blood may be shed, rival groups have resorted to hiring armed guards for protection at heated branch meetings. The meetings, called branch general meetings (BGMs), are being called to…
Pretoria – Private forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan says he will not back down until certain “corrupt” people are behind bars. “We are dealing with criminals – criminals with badges and criminals with gowns. They are going to go to prison for what they did. I will not stop,” O’Sullivan said…
Ficksburg – An attack at a farm near Ficksburg on Thursday has left a farm manager in a critical condition in hospital, one suspect dead and another seriously injured, police have confirmed. A farmworker, who was also injured during an ensuing scuffle, has received treatment for his injuries. Three suspects…
Durban – The Madadeni High Court in KwaZulu-Natal has sentenced a 38-year-old man to two life terms in prison for the murder of two men on a farm in Swart Umfolozi. Thulani Hloniphani Sibiya was also sentenced to an additional 40 years in jail for attempted murder, armed robbery and…
Vryheid – A member of the Vryheid community policing forum says the attack on Bokkie Potgieter, 73, who died after allegedly being repeatedly hit with a panga on Monday, was so brutal that his face was left unrecognisable. The man who killed him was also apparently beaten by residents after…
Johannesburg – Two people have been arrested in connection with the killing of a 63-year-old farmer near Fochville on the West Rand. The incident occurred on Tuesday – a day after #BlackMonday, when protests were held against farm attacks and killings. Gauteng police said the farmer and a farm worker…
Cape Town – Activists from #UnitedBehind are on Wednesday expected to march from Central Methodist Mission in Greenmarket Square in Cape Town to an undisclosed location to demand the arrest of President Jacob Zuma. An organiser with the movement, Bruce Baigrie, said the march was expected to begin at around…
Durban – A 73-year-old man has been hacked to death on a farm in Vryheid, northern KwaZulu-Natal as the #BlackMonday protest against farm murders continues around the country. Police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala told News24 that the suspect also died when he crashed the deceased’s Ford Bantam bakkie into an…
Johannesburg – President Jacob Zuma has reshuffled his cabinet, adjusting six portfolios including the Ministry of Energy, in a move analysts say is linked to a contentious nuclear energy deal with Russia. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Presidency said it had moved David Mahlobo, former minister of state security…
Potchefstroom – A man believed to be in his 70s was found dead on Friday night in an alleged farm attack, on a plot outside of Potchefstroom.ER24 spokesperson, Russel Meiring, said paramedics had arrived on the scene and found an elderly man lying outside. Local security forces were already on the scene.…
Cape Town – “He saved all of us,” says the wife of a farmer who was shot dead while defending his family and guests, most of whom were teenage girls, at a farm near Philadelphia in the Western Cape. Mark Fagan was shot around 00:00 on Saturday when he approached…
Cape Town – A farmer in the Koue Bokkeveld, 50km from Ceres, is in a critical condition in hospital after he was repeatedly stabbed by two suspects on Monday evening, Western Cape police said on Tuesday. The suspects forced a bag over Wilhelm van der Merwe’s head and dragged him…
Johannesburg – A 96-year-old wheelchair-bound farmer has been robbed by six men who broke into his house in Bothaville, Free State police said on Thursday. Two of the six men attacked two of the farmer’s security guards with a hammer, injuring them, at about 20:20 on Tuesday, said Captain Stephen…
Johannesburg – Journalists and editors have alleged that their reporting on state capture and the Gupta family is the real reason why they are being targeted by Black First, Land First. This emerged in several affidavits by some of the 11 journalists who BLF had previously alleged were working in…
2015-07-01 09:30 Pietermaritzburg – Four men were on Tuesday found guilty of the brutal murder of Winterton man Mohamed Engar, 67, and of a robbery in which his wife, Razia, was burnt with an electric iron in 2013. The incident, which occurred on the evening of December 5, 2013, took…
2015-07-02 13:07 Pretoria – This year alone there have been 116 recorded farm attacks with more than a fifth resulting in deaths, AfriForum said on Thursday. There had been a rise in farm murders since 1990 with 23% of those in 2015 ending in death. The organisation said 27 farm…
2015-10-12 10:00 Pietermaritzburg – The men suspected of murdering Camperdown farmer Krishnadhaven Govender last month “for R300” have been arrested. Last month the well-known farmer and family man was shot and killed by armed robbers when they broke into his house after an attempt to break into his neighbours’ property…
2015-11-02 10:07 Pietermaritzburg – One of the killers of 65-year-old David Maratos on a farm in Greytown in 2013, has been jailed effectively for 25 years. Maratos was looking after the property on behalf of the owner when he was stabbed to death .Judge Jacqueline Henriques on Friday sentenced Bheki Qwabe…
2016-03-07 18:10 Durban – Six people have been arrested for the murder of 67-year-old farmer Anton Phillip Verwey in Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal police said on Monday. He was found lying on his stomach with two open wounds to the abdomen early on Monday, Major Thulani Zwane said. Six people, aged between…
2016-03-15 17:53 Johannesburg – The police have not yet made any arrests in connection with the murder of a Randfontein family on their farm near Doornfontein. Captain Tsekiso Mofokeng said on Tuesday investigations were continuing. He said it was unclear how many people had attacked the family, beating them to death last Wednesday…
Durban – Police are investigating a double farm murder in northern KwaZulu-Natal in which a farmer and his father-in-law were killed in a hail of bullets on Tuesday night. Vryheid Neighbourhood Watch spokesperson Adriaan Botha said the brutal attack had left the community reeling. “Last night we got wind that there…
Durban – Two men arrested in connection with the murder of a KwaZulu-Natal farmer last week have been remanded in custody after a brief appearance in the Greytown Magistrate’s Court on Monday. Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said the two would appear in court again next week when they are…
Polokwane – A relative of the farmer killed at his smallholding near Thabazimbi on Friday has been arrested following a chase in which the suspect shot himself, Limpopo police have confirmed. The 25-year-old man sustained a bullet to the head when officers cornered him and pulled him off the road…
Johannesburg – The South African Council of Churches (SACC) will no longer sit on the sidelines while society suffers, its senior Vice President Reverend Frank Chikane told journalists on Saturday. “Today it’s a beginning of a new thing,” Chikane said at the SACC’s June 16 commemoration in Orlando Stadium. “The…
