Byline: Refeloe Letsoisa
24 July 2024
Five suspects, including two women and three men, aged between 23 and 41, were arrested for the alleged kidnapping of a 14-year-old girl in Kriel on Monday, 22 July 2024.
The Acting Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Major General (Dr) Zeph Mkhwanazi, has applauded the swift action of SAPS members that led to the arrest.
It is further alleged that soon after the girl was kidnapped, these suspects made calls to the victim’s mother, threatening to kill the girl if police were alerted.
The two off-duty police constables were called upon by the acting station commander of Kriel to assist in tracing the suspects.
The off-duty members followed up on some information and traced the suspects until they cornered four of them in Vereeniging, in the Gauteng Province, on Tuesday, 23 July 2024. The girl was also found unharmed.
The arrested suspects in Gauteng were three males and one female (41), while the fifth suspect, a female (30), was also arrested in Kriel this afternoon.
The suspects are facing charges relating to kidnapping and extortion. The police cannot rule out the possibility that these suspects may have been involved in other kidnapping-related incidents, and the investigation will also focus on previously reported cases of kidnapping, with the potential to add more charges as the investigation continues.
The suspects are expected to appear in court soon.
“While the incident itself is distressing, the swift and effective response demonstrated by SAPS members merits commendation.
Our members stand resolute in their commitment to safeguard the community and uphold the principles of justice and security.
These members displayed total commitment to their call of duty, even when off-duty, and we acknowledge and appreciate the commendable efforts of all those involved in ensuring the safe return of the child and bringing the perpetrators thereof to justice.
We trust that this breakthrough will, in some way, assist in some of the outstanding kidnapping cases that were committed in and around Kriel.
Kidnapping cases are of great concern to us as police, and we are doing our best to mitigate this challenge,” said Major General Dr. Mkhwanazi.
