Updated: Police arrest Enyobeni tavern owner and two employees

The owner of the Enyobeni tavern in Scenery Park, East London, where 21 teenagers died more than two weeks ago, has been arrested along with two employees.

According to Eastern Cape police, the arrests were made on Saturday and Tuesday respectively, by a team of detectives.

Enyobeni tavern tragedy

Police spokesperson, Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana, said the arrest of the 52-year-old suspect and two employees, aged between 33 and 34, followed a criminal complaint laid by the Eastern Cape Liquor Board (ECLB) at Scenery Park Police Station for contravention of the Liquor Act.

The ECLB laid the criminal complaint against the tavern owner for allegedly selling alcohol to minors.

Following police investigations, Kinana said the two tavern employees were each fined R2 000, while a summons was served to the owner for his immediate arrest and appearance in court on 19 August 2022.

“The two employees have been given an option of a fine in terms of the Liquor Act. Should they fail to pay the fine, they will be required to appear in the same court on the 19th August 2022,” Kinana said in a statement.

Cause of deaths still under investigation

The 21 teenagers, nine girls and 12 boys, died under mysterious circumstances in the early hours of Sunday 26 June, with forensic investigations yet to confirm the cause of their deaths.

Kinana said at an appropriate time and conclusion of the investigation, the forensic results would be made available to the affected families.

“There are no new developments at this stage,” he said.

Eastern Cape Provincial Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene, said police remained committed to ensuring that their investigations into the Enyobeni tavern tragedy were conducted in a “professional and well-organised manner” for a successful prosecution before the courts.

“Just as we said in the beginning, an investigation is a process and needs to be treated with extreme care and wisdom so that we can achieve the desired outcomes, which all of us will be proud of.

“This is the beginning of the great work we are doing behind the scene,” Mene said.

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