SAPS Walmer detectives, together with the Provincial Serious and Violent Crime Investigation Unit, have launched a manhunt following four separate murder incidents reported in the Walmer Location area on Thursday, 21 May, where six people were killed.
According to SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana, investigators are probing whether the cases may be linked.
She stated that in the first incident, which happened at approximately 07:35, Walmer SAPS first responders attended to a murder complaint at the old graveyard in G-West, Walmer Location.
“Upon arrival, community members led officers to the body of a 37-year-old male, which was covered with a blanket,” she said. “After removing the blanket, police found that the deceased had sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the head and one gunshot wound to the left hand.”
Gantana added that in the second incident at around 09:00, in Phela Kula Street, Area Q, Walmer Location, police discovered the body of a 56-year-old foreign national male inside a residence.
“Preliminary investigations indicate the victim sustained gunshot wounds to the left cheek and left ribs,” she said. “The circumstances surrounding this incident are still under investigation.”
She added that in the third incident at approximately 10:14, police responded to a complaint in the bushes near Airport Valley, Walmer, where the bodies of three unknown males were found lying with their hands tied. “All three had sustained multiple gunshot wounds,” she said.
Gantana stated that in the fourth incident, at about 10:34, while officers were still processing crime scenes in the area, a shepherd alerted police to another body discovered opposite the Solomon Mahlangu Squatter Camp in Walmer Location.
Police found the body of a 23-year-old male with multiple gunshot wounds to the head, arms, and legs, as well as visible bruises on the body.
She added that the names of the deceased will be released only after formal identification processes have been completed and next of kin have been informed.
“The investigation into all the murders is ongoing,” she said. “Detectives are working to determine whether the incidents are connected.”
Anyone with information that may assist the investigation is urged to contact Lieutenant Colonel Monde Sithole on 082 457 2812 or Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
“All information will be treated with the strictest confidentiality,” Gantana concluded.
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