Africa-Press – South-Africa. Three men have been arrested in connection with the killing of 41-year-old police Sergeant Phillip Mathlaela on Christmas Day.
The men – aged 22, 25 and 30 – were arrested during a raid on three premises in Kliptown, Gauteng, on Friday.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said it was believed that Mathlaela had been shot dead while parked on a bridge in Kliptown. His body was then dumped in a river.
“The motive of the attack and killing of the off-duty police officer is under investigation. The police officer’s belongings – including two cellphones, his vehicle and its key – were found on the scene, ruling out robbery as a motive for the attack,” she said.
The three men will be charged with murder and for being in possession of an unlicenced firearm and ammunition.
They are expected to appear in the Kliptown Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
News24 previously reported that four men had been arrested for the murder of a policeman found stabbed and shot in Somerset West on Christmas morning. The Hawks have since taken over the investigation.
“The constable sustained several stab and gunshot wounds and succumbed at the crime scene,” Western Cape Hawks spokesperson Zinzi Hani said.
When his body was discovered, his service pistol and his cellphone were missing.
Hani said police had interviewed a man who was injured after the officer had apparently fired shots at a group of people who were trying to rob him.
Before being robbed, he apparently fired several shots at his attackers, wounding one.
Hani added:
During the interview, the injured man was arrested when it became clear that he may have been one of the attackers.
A multi-disciplinary team was put together to trace the other attackers and the officer’s firearm, Hani said.
Policing unions have called for urgent action to prevent police murders.
The South African Policing Union (SAPU) said it was outraged by the two murders, and called for the murder of police officers to be declared treason.
“We call on the state President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare police killings as treason, for it is a crime against the state, so that those who are found guilty of police killing crimes face harsher sentences,” it said.
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