Pretoria – Police in Limpopo have arrested four suspects and linked them to about 20 cases of housebreaking and theft which occurred at farms in the Westenburg policing area.
“According to information, the farmers in these areas have been experiencing burglaries and theft in their farms and the suspects could not be identified. This was a serious concern to them and police,” provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said.
He said on Thursday, police received information about a group of suspects who were allegedly engaged in the rampant burglaries in farming communities in and around Polokwane.
The suspects were said to be driving along the N1 freeway to Makhado. Police “promptly” assembled a team of agents drawn from crime intelligence unit, the tracking unit, and the murder and robbery unit to follow up on the information.
“Their hard work paid off when they ultimately had a breakthrough. They arrested four suspects in possession of suspected stolen property that included four amplifiers, two laptops, five generators, three speakers, two grass cutters, three angle grinders, two jig saws, a plasma TV, a bank card, a blanket and cables,” Ledwaba said.
The arrested suspects are set to appear before the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court facing charges including possession of suspected stolen goods, housebreaking, theft, and contravention of the Immigration Act.
Last month, the High Court in Polokwane sentenced 28-year-old Lazarus Justice Mohapi to two life sentences and a combined 48 years imprisonment for the murder of a Bela-Bela farmer and his employee.
Ledwaba said Mohapi entered Simon Malebane’s farm in Radium on August 17, 2019, assaulted and killed him, then attacked and killed farm worker Daniel Leburu.
“The convicted farm murderer Lazarus Mohapi was found guilty of two counts of murder, conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery with aggravating circumstances, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, and contravention of Immigration Act,” Ledwaba said.
IOL