Prison guard, suspected accomplice in court for allegedly killing Mpumalanga taxi owner
Police said they were are optimistic that the arrest would assist in cracking other open criminal cases related to a taxi feud in the area.
A passenger in a taxi looks on while the driver is being questioned by Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) officers during a roadblock after curfew, to help curb the spread of COVID-19, in Johannesburg on December 29, 2020. Picture for illustration: Wikus de Wet / AFP.
Police in Mpumalanga have arrested two men, one of them a correctional officer, in connection with the murder of a taxi boss in Barberton.
According to the police, Andrew Mwali, 34, was gunned down by an armed man last week after he alighted from his Toyota Quantum at the home of a mechanic. The gunman fled the scene.
“The two men were then arrested at Nelspruit and Barberton respectively on Tuesday, 16 February after police investigations [indicated] that they were somehow involved in the said murder.
“One of the suspects is a correctional services official stationed at Barberton prison, and police are optimistic that the arrest will assist in cracking other criminal cases opened pertinent to a taxi feud in the area,” provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said on Saturday.
The two men, aged 34 and 55, first appeared in court on Tuesday, Hlathi said. The men will make their second appearance in court on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the investigation into an attack on another Barberton taxi owner killed on the same day as Mwali was continuing. The taxi owner’s Barberton home was attacked by gunmen who fired shots at the property. Hlathi said the taxi owner was the target but was not home at the time.
No one was injured in the attack.
News24
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