Suspects kidnap man, murder father and daughter in spat over alleged affair

Two individuals have been arrested in Mandeni, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), after the shooting of three people on Monday.

The accused, aged 27 and 37, appeared in Nyoni Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 4 September. 

On the day of the incident, police responded to reports of a shooting. Once they arrived at the scene, they found a 62-year-old man and his 43-year-old daughter were shot and killed. Additionally, the deceased’s wife had been injured and was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds. 

Murder ‘over an affair’

Rapid investigations soon led to the identification of the suspects, who were allegedly searching for the brother of the deceased. They alleged the brother had been involved in an affair with one of their girlfriends. 

On Tuesday, KZN police conducted an operation and caught the perpetrators at a residence in Mandeni.

The suspects were found in possession of two firearms. One was homemade, while the other was not identifiable because its serial number was filed off. 

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Kidnapping

Before they began their shooting spree, the accused had allegedly kidnapped a man in Mangethe and pulled him to nearby bushes where they tied him against a tree and gagged his mouth. 

The suspects allegedly told the victim they were going to murder people at a specific household and kill him last. The injured man was able to free himself and reported the incident to the police. 

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Gun Violence in KZN

According to the latest crime statistics, the ratio of murders committed per capita in KZN is 12.3%. The province is also home to eight of the top 30 police stations for murder. Earlier stats also reported 28 030 crimes committed and 1603 murders in the province from July to September 2023. 

The Citizen this week reported that three people were killed and an 11-year-old girl injured in a crossfire during a shooting in the Mpumalanga township, west of Durban.

Additionally, six suspected extortion and murder suspects were killed in a shootout with police on Monday. KZN police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda described the suspected murders as “execution-style”.

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