Author: Malebogo Putu
The investigation into the murder of Mossel Bay couple Dina Marais, 73, and Ernst Marais, 71, has taken a major turn following the arrest of two Mozambican nationals in neighbouring Mozambique, authorities announced on Tuesday. The arrests come nearly two weeks after the couple’s bodies were discovered near Crooks Corner in the northern section of the Kruger National Park, where police believe they were attacked before their vehicle was stolen and taken across the border. According to the South African Police Service (SAPS), the suspects, aged 32 and 33, were arrested through a coordinated cross-border investigation involving South African police,…
A 27 year old man accused of raping a mentally challenged 19 year old male in QwaQwa is under police guard in hospital after he was allegedly assaulted by community members seeking vigilante justice, police said. The incident allegedly occurred on Sunday evening in Makgaolwaneng Village near Tseki, QwaQwa. According to police, the suspect allegedly invited the teenager to meet him at a local tavern. The complainant reportedly approached the man seeking money, but when the suspect was unable to provide any, the teenager left and returned home. Police allege that the suspect followed the complainant to his residence. Once…
Police have launched investigations into murder and rape following the discovery of the remains of an 18-year-old girl who had been reported missing in Boitekong, authorities said on Wednesday. The victim, identified as Olebogeng Felicia Tagote, was last seen on May 24 after leaving school with a friend. Her disappearance prompted a search involving members of the South African Police Service (SAPS), Community in Blue volunteers and local residents. The search came to a tragic end when human remains believed to be hers were found near a bridge along Bophuthatswana Road leading to Boitekong, close to a primary school. A…
Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, has tested positive for COVID 19 and is currently in self-isolation, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) announced on Wednesday. The department said the minister remains in good spirits and urged people who have recently been in contact with him to take precautionary measures. In a brief media statement issued by the department, officials confirmed that Tau had contracted the virus and would temporarily withdraw from public engagements while recovering. “Minister Tau is in good spirits and is currently in self isolation,” departmental spokesperson Kaamil Alli said in the…
A routine vehicle checkpoint on the N1 near Vaal Plaza led to the arrest of a 35 year old man and the seizure of suspected illicit cigarettes valued at approximately R7.5 million, police said on Wednesday. The arrest followed an operation conducted by members of the Fezile Dabi District Highway Patrol on Tuesday afternoon as part of ongoing efforts to combat the illegal trade in tobacco products. According to police, officers were conducting stop and search operations when they identified a suspicious Isuzu truck travelling in the direction of Kroonstad. The vehicle was placed under surveillance before being intercepted at…
A 48 year old man has been arrested and charged with murder following the death of his girlfriend, who allegedly suffered fatal injuries after being assaulted during a domestic dispute in Intabazwe near Harrismith, police said on Wednesday. The victim, identified as 43 year old Lerato Mofokeng, died on Tuesday, June 2, after spending several days receiving medical treatment for injuries allegedly inflicted by her boyfriend. According to police, the incident occurred on Sunday evening at approximately 7 p.m. when Mofokeng reportedly confronted her boyfriend after seeing him in the company of another woman. During the confrontation, the suspect allegedly…
Home Affairs Committee Calls for Specialised Refugee Courts as Backlog and Duplicate Applications Grow Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs has raised serious concerns over what it describes as the growing abuse of litigation processes by asylum seekers and refugee applicants, warning that the trend is placing immense strain on the country’s immigration and refugee systems. During a meeting on Tuesday with the Department of Home Affairs and the Refugee Appeals Authority of South Africa (RAASA), the committee examined measures aimed at reducing the persistent backlog in asylum seeker and refugee applications. Committee chairperson Mosa Chabane said while the Constitution…
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed a Special Tribunal order freezing an upmarket property in Meyersdal Nature Estate, Alberton, linked to businessman Thapelo Samuel Buthelezi, in an escalating legal effort to recover more than R532 million allegedly irregularly paid under Free State emergency medical services (EMS) contracts. The order, issued by the Special Tribunal, prohibits Buthelezi from selling, transferring, mortgaging, or otherwise dealing with the property. The matter forms part of a broader SIU investigation into inter-facility EMS contracts awarded by the Free State Department of Health to Buthelezi-linked companies, which the Tribunal has already found to be unlawful,…
Pharmacy professionals implicated in the unlawful manufacture and sale of unregistered weight-loss medicines could face severe disciplinary action, including removal from the professional register, the South African Pharmacy Council warned on Saturday. The warning follows a joint enforcement operation by the SAPC and the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority at Sentra Pharmacy in Silverton, Pretoria, where authorities seized injectable products containing semaglutide, tirzepatide and related combination formulations. The products, promoted largely for weight management purposes, were allegedly being produced and distributed outside the legal scope of pharmaceutical compounding permitted under South African law. The South African Pharmacy Council said…
South African health regulators have intensified a crackdown on the unlawful manufacture and distribution of unregistered weight-loss medicines containing semaglutide and tirzepatide, following a joint inspection that uncovered major regulatory breaches at a Pretoria pharmacy. The operation, conducted on 11 May by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority and the South African Pharmacy Council, targeted iDexis (Pty) Ltd, trading as Sentra Pharmacy in Silverton, Pretoria. Authorities seized all injectable GLP-1 and GIP products found at the premises after investigators uncovered what they described as unlawful manufacturing activities involving semaglutide, tirzepatide, and combination formulations marketed for weight loss. Regulators said…