One of the three men arrested and charged with the murder of a German tourist in Limpopo had befriended the tourist before he recruited his friends to rob and kill him. The 74-year-old tourist was brutally assaulted and killed in Northam in Waterberg District on Saturday.
According to Limpopo police, the victim drove from Botswana on Friday and arrived in Lephalale on Saturday morning. Along the way, he offered an unknown man a lift. "The tourist requested the man he had offered a lift to help him with accommodation around North West province before he could proceed with his tour across the country. Preliminary reports indicate that the pair established a friendship to an extent that the victim requested the man to drive his vehicle," police spokesperson Colonel Malesala Ledwaba said adding that on arrival at the said accommodation in Moruleng in North West, the suspect suggested they pass by a liquor outlet where they had a few drinks. "That's when the suspect informed his two friends that the elderly man was expecting a substantial amount of money from his family abroad. The suspect and his two friends drove with the unsuspecting victim to his place, where upon arrival, they tied him up and started to assault him while demanding his bank pin code," Ledwaba added.
The suspects also searched their victim and took an undisclosed amount of cash and other valuables. "The three suspects removed the vehicle's number plates and drove with the victim while assaulting him to Northam using a secluded gravel road. When they reached a certain farm, two suspects dragged him from the vehicle to dump him in the bushes, while the driver remained in the vehicle," said Ledwaba. He also said that while patrolling the area, security officials together with a member of a Rural Safety noticed a suspicious vehicle parked at night without number plates. They stopped to investigate and that's when they noticed the suspect's blood-stained t-shirt and they notified the police. The police started their initial investigation and the old man's body was found in the bushes. "An intelligence driven operation was activated and the two suspects were arrested in North West province later in the evening. They were found in possession of some of the deceased's belongings."
The provincial police Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe has commended police for the swift arrest of the three suspects aged between 24 and 46, who are all foreign nationals. "The victim trusted this ruthless criminal, but he turned against him and together with his friends, tortured and brutally killed him. We will work hard to secure a watertight case that will result in a lengthy conviction for these perpetrators", said General Hadebe. The three suspects will appear before the Northam Magistrates Court today on murder and robbery charges.
