Final arrest for PE retirement centre double murder

The final suspect in the brutal murder of two elderly residents at Stella Londt Retirement Centre in Port Elizabeth has been arrested — after he was nabbed for allegedly robbing a Summerstrand commune.

This brings the total number of arrests since the murders to seven.

Agnes Burns, 92, and Rosemary Langton, 87, were robbed and murdered at the St John’s Old Age Home in Stella Londt Drive on October 10.

Akhona Mnxeba, 28, was one of eight people arrested at the weekend in connection with a robbery at a student commune in Summerstrand on Thursday.

Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said detectives had been looking for Mnxeba since the brutal murder.

“After the eight were arrested for the robbery in Summerstrand, investigations revealed that one of the suspects had provided a false name at the time of the arrest.

“This led to detectives working throughout the weekend, which is when it was established that he was a wanted suspect in the murders,” she said.

Mnxeba appeared in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court yesterday for the robbery of the student and was then also slapped with the double murder charge.

“Our investigation [allegedly] places this suspect [Mnxeba] at the home [Stella Londt] at the time of the murder,” Naidu said.

“He was the final murder suspect we were looking for.

“It would appear that since the rest of his [alleged] crew were arrested, he formed another gang who were now also arrested last week for the student robbery.”

The motive for the murder of the two elderly women is suspected to be an orchestrated robbery.

Shortly after the murders, caregiver Nomgebisi Slangveld, 34, who was on duty on the night of the botched robbery, as well as Mkhuseli Damenti, 30, Nyasha Manyange, 33, Panganai Mabwe, 27, and Craig Madiro, 20, were arrested.

Days later, police arrested Loxolo Kruisjan, 31, in Walmer after a tip-off on his whereabouts.

Kruisjan had been released from prison in May last year after serving nine years of a 15-year sentence for house robbery.

That robbery occurred in Walmer in 2010.

The double murder case was postponed to March 18.

All the accused  remain in custody.