ZiMoja updates on the latest crime news in parts of the country.

FREE STATE: A 24-year-old man was arrested and charged with the murder of a school teacher in Dealesville in the Free State after he was found wearing the teacher's clothes and shoes. The body of Mosiwa Thabagae, who was working at the Kgololosego Secondary School, was found at the teacher's quarters covered in a blanket. According to police spokesperson Captain Stephen Thakeng, the police were called by three women who said they could not get hold of the educator on the phone. "There were blood stains on the walls, a beer bottle covered in blood, broken glasses in the kitchen and the toilet window were left wide open, which was used to gain entrance inside the premises. Cellphones, laptop, bank cards, groceries, and clothes were missing," Thakeng said. Thabagae was declared dead by the paramedics on the scene. Thakeng said a manhunt was launched, and the suspect was traced and arrested at his residence and found wearing clothes of the deceased and shoes. He had an open visible wound on his hand and was also in possession of the deceased's bank card, a laptop and a jacket. He will appear before the Dealesville Magistrate's Court tomorrow on charges of murder and robbery.

NORTH WEST: A 42-year-old man is expected to appear before the Ganyesa Magistrate's Court tomorrow for the alleged murder of his 34-year-old girlfriend. According to the reports, the victim and her boyfriend visited her grandmother on Sunday morning at her home at De-Aar village in Morokweng near Vryburg. The couple allegedly left the grandmother's place and went to the victim's residence also in De-Aar village, where a quarrel ensued. The neighbours alerted the grandmother after the suspect was seen hurriedly leaving the victim's place. The grandmother went to her grandchild's shack, where she found her granddaughter lying in a pool of blood with a stab wound on her upper body. The police were called and with the assistance of the community, a manhunt was launched for the suspect, who was apprehended after being found hiding in the bushes.

GAUTENG: All the drugs that were swallowed by a 30-year-old female Namibian drug mule have been removed from her body, and she has been taken into custody. The woman was arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport on Sunday after she landed from Sau Paulo in Brazil. Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said another X-ray has confirmed that all drugs have been removed from the suspect. The drug mule has released 68 drug bullets from her body with an estimated weight of 850grams. "She has been moved to a detention facility and is expected to appear in the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court on Wednesday on a charge of dealing in drugs and drug possession. Additional charges may be added at a later stage," Mathe said. National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola has applauded the vigilance of the multidisciplinary team working tirelessly to clampdown on criminality at the OR Tambo International Airport.

GAUTENG: More than 1000 suspects have been arrested in the province for various serious crimes, including murder, attempted murder, rape, business robbery, drug dealing, rape, and possession of drugs during Operation Shanela over the weekend. In West Rand, 40 illegal immigrants and 31 drunken driving suspects were arrested. During the operation, over 800 wanted suspects for various crimes were also apprehended by detectives across the province, with 141 arrests related to crimes committed against women and children. In the other four districts of the province, over 20 suspects were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, 40 were illegal immigrants, three for possession of drugs, and two unlicensed liquor outlets were closed for non-compliance with regulations. In a separate incident on Thursday, the police arrested five suspects linked to a business robbery in Orange Farm. Stolen items, including a laptop, cell phone, watch, and firearm used in the robbery, were recovered. On Saturday, the police also foiled a hijacking and kidnapping in Florida, resulting in the arrest of four suspects aged between 25 and 47. The apprehended suspects will soon face justice as they appear before various provincial magistrates' courts.