Lwandle officers warned the public not to take the law into their hands. The officers sent a stern warning after the community of Zola allegedly assaulted the criminal who later died in hospital on Saturday 2 March.
The motive behind the incident is not clear.
Lwandle police spokesperson Sgt Mthokozisi Gama said the police would like to caution residents not to take the law into their hands but rather exercise their citizen arrest rights and hand over the suspected person to the police.
“Taking the law into their own hands does not assist anyone but rather forces the police to act and arrest the culprits. The police detectives are still hard at work searching for murder suspects following the brutal killing of a 23-year-old in Lwandle,” he stated, adding that the incident occurred on Saturday morning.
He alleged that the suspect was assaulted with stones.
“A murder case docket was then opened. The motive for the killing is still unknown at this stage,” said Gama.
A community member, who didn’t want to be known for fear of reprisal, said he is not aware of the incident but said the community is tired of crime.
He stated Lwandle is becoming a playing ground for hooligans.
He said that leaders are not condoning mob justice.
“We understand where their anger is coming from because some of them believe that the officers are not doing their job well.
But again, two wrongs don’t make it right. Let’s allow the law to play its role,” he said, adding that officers are there to protect us.
He urged the community to work together with the police.
Police request anyone who might have information about the incident to contact Lwandle Police Detective Sgt Mfundo Soyiyo on 021 845 2060.
