THERE is a worker among the three accused of brutally murdering a family of seven in Newark, Kwa Dukuza, on Tuesday.
The bodies of the dead, said to be between the ages of 20 and 83, were identified by the suspects in Melmoth, on Wednesday.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, said that among the suspects who are said to be between the ages of 21 and 28, there is one who was a worker at the home of the deceased.
He said they are expected to appear at the KwaDukuza Magistrate’s Court, today.
Narrating the incident, he said the robbers were first kidnapped, taken from their home in Newark on Tuesday night, and killed in Melmoth.
“It was a house cleaner who raised the alarm about the incident on Wednesday morning, after we arrived at the home of the burglars, we found that it had been broken into, seven family members were all missing, and the car was also missing,” said Netshiunda.
He said the Newark police and other police units were called to the scene. He said the Newark police, KwaDukuza investigators, KwaDukuza Tactical Response Team, Provincial Counter Intelligence Unit, Provincial Counter Kidnapping Unit and Provincial Serious Violence Crimes Unit worked together.
He said their investigation first led them to KwaHlomendlini, Mandeni, where two suspects were arrested on Wednesday.
“One of the suspects was found with a cell phone and one of them was robbed. The trail then pointed to Kwa Dendethu, Sundumbili, the police where the third suspect was arrested,” said Netshiunda.
He revealed that the third suspect was found with a gun. He said 11 cell phones were stolen and recovered from the suspects.
He said that’s when the police discovered that one of the robbers was working for the robbers. It was also revealed that the accused jointly broke into the house and they were beaten up and tied up with a rope.
“It turns out that one of them first raped a 20-year-old victim before they loaded them into the car of one of them (the victims), and pointed it at Melmoth,” said Netshiunda, who said they traveled about 200km from the victim’s house to the scene of the incident.
He revealed that the police found that the suspect who had raped the victim (20) at his home, raped him a second time after arriving in Melmoth.
He said that after raping her a second time, he then searched for the bank details and their secret numbers of the three robbers.
“After receiving this information, they then shot and killed all three of them. The other four were stabbed, until they died,” said Netshiunda.
He said the police investigation revealed that on Tuesday night as well as on Wednesday morning, money was withdrawn from banks that were raided several times.
The KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Mkhwanazi, applauded the police for quickly arresting the suspects.
He then ordered the investigators to ensure that justice is done so that the relatives of the victims will be humbled by their wounds.
He said it was troubling to hear that one of the suspects was employed by the robbers.
“We urge employers to be concerned about getting information about the person they are hiring, and to check their suspicious behavior,” said Mkhwanazi.
He said that usually, in farm or rural areas, crimes are committed by people who know or are close to them.