Amcu murders: kingpins held

Minister of Police Fikile Mbalula has announced that the “brains” behind the killings of Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) members have been arrested.

“Last night [Saturday], we took down [the] brains behind the killings. We still have few to chase,” he said.

Several union members were killed in rapid succession in September last year. Soon afterwards, Amcu leader Joseph Mathunjwa announced that the union had hired private investigator Paul O’Sullivan to probe the killings of union members in the platinum belt.

Yesterday at Rustenburg police station in North West, Mbalula said a total of nine people have now been arrested in connection with the union-related murders in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and in Marikana in the North West.

Six of them were the “masterminds” and the others were the “trigger-pullers”. However, he refused to reveal their identities, saying the public could expect to see them in court.

Describing the murders as “systematic”, Mbalula said arresting the masterminds was a breakthrough in the investigation. Some of them were politicians and union leaders, he added.

“We never normally get to the conspirators. “It always ends with the guy who pulled the trigger and that’s it, which is why I am very elated that for once we have got them,” he said.

“We must not only arrest the trigger-puller, but also the person who ordered the killing. “We have been in the Eastern Cape, in KwaZulu-Natal and now we are in the North West,” he said.

According to Mbalula, Amcu leaders were being killed because of internal strife.

He warned those involved in the political killings who haven’t been arrested yet that “they are not untouchables and we will find them. And our police officers are working hard to ensure they are brought to book.”

– Chisom Jenniffer Okoye

//

For more news your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.