By Montsho Matlala
Klerksdorp – Police have arrested seven men for questioning following the brazen daylight shooting of ANCYL Limpopo PEC member, Nkateko Mbhoma Maluleka, who was gunned down in Leeudoringstad on Tuesday while travelling to the league’s national council conference.
North West provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Sabatha Mokgwabone, said the first two men were arrested after their vehicle was involved in a crash.
Two firearms were confiscated from them for ballistic investigation.
“Upon searching the area near the scene of the shooting where the young man was fatally shot, we followed the description of the car from which shots were fired as given by witnesses. The car had crashed, and the two occupants told us they are security officers hired by Transnet and that they were chasing a car loaded with stolen cables. We then confiscated a pistol and a rifle from the duo for investigations. The two suspects are now being kept for questioning,” said Mokgwabone.
Police then started their hunt for the alleged cable-theft suspects and found a seven-seater black Suzuki with five men on board. They were arrested after allegedly failing to explain the origin of the cables they were carrying.
“The five suspects have since admitted to police that they were fleeing after being pursued and shot at by occupants of a vehicle similar to the one found involved in the accident. The whole drama here is part of the ongoing investigation, but the five will be charged for possible cable theft,” the police spokesperson explained.
Maluleka, 32, was shot dead on Tuesday when the car he was travelling in, together with his comrades en route to the ANCYL’s 2nd National Council Conference, was sprayed with bullets allegedly from a vehicle that had been following them for some time.
The Young Lions were on their way to the conference venue in Kimberley, Northern Cape, when they came under gunfire.
There were no further injuries in the attack, according to police.
ANCYL provincial secretary in Limpopo, Phineas Sebola, said a delegation will take time off from the conference in Kimberley to accompany Maluleka’s family members to the shooting scene at Leeudoringstad, North West, on Wednesday to mourn the fallen leader.
“We are in sorrow with the Maluleka family in these difficult times. At the appropriate time we will also visit the family in Malamulele, Limpopo, to express our heartfelt condolences,” said Sebola.
The league’s national secretary-general, Mntuwoxolo Ngudle, condemned the scourge of violent crime which continues to claim lives in South Africa.
“This senseless act of violence has robbed the movement of a committed young leader who dedicated his skills to the struggle for youth emancipation and the advancement of our people,” said Ngudle
