Police minister Bheki Cele announced that a traffic officer and his daughter are among the four suspects arrested in connection with the murder of Cala ANC chief whip Mxolisi Nobhongoza nine days ago.
Cele broke the news to hundreds of people attending the launch of a new traditional policing concept at Nqadu Great Place in Willowvale on Friday.
Speaking as thunder rolled, lightning cracked and the rain came down, Cele said the suspected “trigger-puller” was among those arrested for the slaying of the Zakhisizwe municipality politician. “We have arrested all of the people we believe killed the councillor in Cala. When the commissioner says arrest people within 72 hours, we make sure we get you in less than that 72 hours.
“What is more tragic is that one of the suspects is a government official, a traffic officer. We will hear in court exactly what was the purpose of the incident,” Cele said.
He said the swift response of the police was thanks to an an excellent partnership between police and community members.
“More details will be [emerging] in court. We are not going to run ahead of court. Three were arrested plus one whom we suspect was a trigger-puller. It would be much better to stop the killings before they happen but also it is still important that when those killings happen, we react quickly. That is why we have a 72-hour turnaround strategy.”
Hawks spokesperson Captain Anelisa Feni said the serious organised crime investigation unit arrested a 32-year-old man in East London in connection with the incident on Thursday.
Nobhongoza, 42, was shot and killed on November 29 after he was allegedly ambushed by three suspects while walking in his neighbourhood.
Cele said he wanted to stop the new trend of political killings in the Eastern Cape.
The hit on Nobhongoza comes 14 months after Raymond Mhlaba council speaker Thozama Njobe was killed after being shot 16 times in what was believed to be a political assassination. The killing took place in Fort Beaufort outside Njobe's home on July 17 2017...