Tshwarelo Hunter Mogakane
Pretoria - Limpopo has become the second province to record an incident in which a group of women were held at gunpoint and gang-raped before being robbed of their belongings.
In the latest incident, five women were locked up in the offices of a funeral parlour and raped at Malipsdrift outside Polokwane in the early hours of Sunday. This follows the gang-rape of eight music video actresses in Krugersdorp, Gauteng, about six weeks ago.
Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo, said that on Sunday six heavily armed men targeted two funeral parlours next to Leporong along the R37 road.
“Two female friends on their way to visit a boyfriend working at Wisani Burial Society, were walking along the R37 road, when they were accosted by six men who grabbed them and took them to the first mortuary where they shot and injured one employee.
“They then proceeded to the next mortuary and on arrival, they found three female and six male employees. All six males were severely assaulted by the suspects, allegedly using the butts of their firearms, until they became unconscious. All five females were then gang-raped and robbed of their cellphones and other belongings.
The suspects took an undisclosed amount of money from the safe and fled,” said Mojapelo. The victims were discovered by another employee who was reporting for duty.
“Police were alerted and on arrival they found the badly injured victims lying on the ground and others on chairs. Some female victims were also assaulted. The victims were transported to hospital.”
All role players, including forensic specialists, were called to the scene, he said. “The unfolding investigations will shed more light on what transpired.”
Mojapelo emphasised that the case was simply a business robbery that resulted in assault and rape, but nothing similar to the incident in Krugersdorp.
“The facts are different. This was a business robbery committed by heartless criminals who then committed other serious cases in the process,” he said.
Limpopo police commissioner Lieutenant-General Thembi Hadebe has already activated a team of investigators to hunt down the suspects.
“The team will hunt down these criminals. I urge community members to come forward with information to assist police in cracking these cases as speedily as possible,” said Hadebe.
Five cases of rape have been opened, along with three counts of kidnapping, attempted murder and business robbery.
“Anyone with information that can lead to the arrest of the suspects can contact Lieutenant-Colonel Lehlagane Mamadisa on 079 894 5482; the Crime Stop number 08600 10111 or the nearest police station or send a report via MySAPS app. Callers may opt to remain anonymous and any information received will be treated with strict confidentiality,“ Hadebe added.
In July, eight women were attacked while filming a music video at a closed mine in Krugersdorp. About 20 armed suspects gang-raped the women for hours before fleeing with their belongings. Seven men positively linked to the crime remain behind bars. The men were among 89 illegal mining suspects (zama zamas) rounded up in Krugersdorp.
Pretoria News