Andries Komane Sello, accused of farm murder, abandoned his bail application on Monday.
Sello, 37, from Cullinan abandoned his bail application at the Cullinan Magistrate’s Court, he is facing a charge of murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, and possession of stolen property.
On July 20, at about 2pm, a police officer responded to a farm attack at Plot 2 Louwsbaken, Cullinan, where he found two witnesses. The witnesses told the officer that they received a call from the daughter of the victims telling them that her parents were not responding to her calls and asked them to check on them.
When they arrived at the farm, they found the 81-year-old man murdered by an unknown suspect. When the police officer went inside the house to check, he found the deceased on the dining room floor with an open wound on his head, and his feet tied with a wire. His wife was found on the kitchen floor with injuries.
The wife was taken to hospital where she is receiving medical care. After investigations, Sello was arrested on July 25 at his home where some of the stolen items were also found.
“The matter was postponed to 26 September 2024 for further investigations and the accused is remanded in custody,” said NPA regional spokesperson Gauteng Division: Pretoria Lumka Mahanjana.
Meanwhile, police have through their high density operations commonly known as “Operation Shanela” arrested 14 157 suspects from the period starting August 6 to August 11.
Police said through heightened police visibility, working closely with key stakeholders in the fight against crime, SAPS members continue to stamp the authority of the state.
Just this week alone, police conducted more than 250 roadblocks throughout the country. Tracing operations, stop and searches as well as patrols and hostel searches were also conducted.
SAPS national spokesperson said Brigadier Athlenda Mathe following arrests were made: 4783 wanted suspects for crimes such as murder, rape, possession of illegal firearms and business robberies were arrested, 159 suspects were arrested for murder, 94 suspects were arrested for attempted murder, 271 suspects were arrested for rape, 121 of them were arrested in KwaZulu-Natal.
This is the second consecutive week that KZN police register the majority of arrests in relation to rape cases. Last week, KZN recorded 80 arrests out of the 182 suspects that were arrested through countrywide operations, 98 suspects were arrested for being in the illegal possession of firearms, 24 were arrested in KZN while 22 were arrested in the Western Cape, assault GBH continues to register a large number of arrests with 1254 suspects arrested, 458 suspects were arrested for the illegal dealing in liquor 155 of these arrests were effected in KZN while Mpumalanga recorded 113 arrests, 334 drug dealers were arrested during this period. 104 were arrested in the Western Cape while 64 were arrested in the Free State, 1002 illegal immigrants were arrested. 280 of them were arrested in Gauteng while 172 were arrested in KZN.
When it comes to under recoveries and confiscations, police registered the following successes: 99 firearms were confiscated during operations, 20 of these firearms were confiscated during police operations in KZN. This is the third consecutive week in which police in KZN recover a high number of firearms.
Last week, KZN police confiscated 47 firearms and in the previous week from July 21 to 27 July, the province seized 40 firearms, 1 466 rounds of ammunition were also confiscated and 70 hijacked and stolen vehicles were also recovered during this weeks operations
Mathe said a highlight of major takedowns include a Portuguese businessman was rescued in Lenasia, Johannesburg on Saturday morning by a multidisciplinary team led by SAPS. He was kidnapped in July outside his business premises. A Zimbabwean woman who is undocumented, has been arrested in connection with his kidnapping.
The Hawks in the North West arrested seven suspects in Rustenburg and Brits for the alleged theft of precious metals worth R350m.
“The arrest follows information received about the theft of suspected platinum group material at a mine in Rustenburg,” Mathe said.
She said eight suspected cash-in-transit robbers were fatally wounded during confrontation with police in Khayelitsha, Cape Town. Seven AK47 rifles were found in their possession.
In Eastern Cape, police responded to a business robbery in the Nqamakwe district. A shoot-out ensued between robbers and police. Three suspects were arrested, while one was shot and killed.
Two women aged 50 and 55 were arrested by JMPD officers for impersonating SAPS officers. The women allegedly promised unsuspecting victims jobs in the SAPS if they paid an amount of R8000. An e-hailing driver alerted police and JMPD acted on the information.
“Police will continue with their weekly operations to rid communities of crime, communities are urged to work together with the police by joining their local Community Police Forum (CPF) at their local police station. Through CPF structures, SAPS is able to jointly solve crime problems with the assistance of our communities,” Mathe said.
SAPS reminds all job seekers that jobs in the service are not for sale and should anyone demand money for placement in the SAPS, they should immediately report it to the Crime Stop Number on 0860010111.
The Star