Following a recent series of killings in Amangwe, the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Khombinkosi Jula tasked detectives from the Provincial Investigative Team to investigate the violence that has plagued the area. “I am pleased with the results of the operations which resulted in ten arrests as well as the recovery of nine illegal firearms. The firearms which were seized will be subjected to ballistic tests to determine if they were used in any of the murders and other crimes that were reported in that area,” he said.
Following a painstaking investigation, which led to the identification of a number of culprits, in the early hours of 23 May 2020, a multi-disciplinary operation comprising of various units in the SAPS ensued in Amangwe.
The team comprised of local police officers and specialised units such as the Special Task Force, the Tactical Response Team and Public Order Police. They arrested ten of the identified suspects in Nyezane, an area that falls under the Amangwe policing precinct.
The suspects were found in possession of firearms as well as 108 rounds of ammunition. Police officers also seized a large quantity of dagga found in the possession of the arrested men. Police arrested the suspects at several homesteads in the area.
The suspects who are aged between 18 and 62 will appear in the Estcourt Magistrates Court on 25 May 2020, for being in illegal possession of firearms and ammunition as well for being in possession of dagga. Investigations into their reign of terror in the Amangwe area is continuing and detectives hope to charge them with additional crimes soon.
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