4 Men, 1 Woman Arrested in Mpumalanga for On-Duty Senior Ermelo Cop’s Murder
- A joint multidisciplinary team arrested five suspects for the murder of an on-duty senior police officer in Ermelo
- Four men and a woman allegedly accosted Lt-Col Piet Pretorious outside the Vehicle Crime Investigation Unit
- Hawks spokesperson Lt-Col Magonseni Nkosi told Briefly News Pretorious served over three decades in the force
- The police's Lt-Col Jabu Ndubane confirmed to Briefly News the suspects will appear in court on Monday, 20 January
Source: Original
ERMELO — A woman is among five people arrested for the murder of a senior Mpumalanga policeman, gunned down while on duty in Ermelo on Thursday, 16 January 2025.
The group allegedly accosted Lt-Col Piet Pretorious on his way back to the office from normal duties, shooting him execution-style inside a police car.
Ermelo crime investigation top cop slain
He succumbed to multiple gunshot wounds on arrival at a medical facility. A bullet-riddled state vehicle painted the picture of a callous attack.
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The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) took over the case before a joint multidisciplinary team cornered the five suspects, four men, aged 29 to 40, and a 36-year-old woman, in Nelspruit the same night.
Officers seized a blue VW Polo, allegedly used during the crime, and found the burnt shell of a BMW, also reportedly linked, at a veld in Ermelo on Friday.
"According to a preliminary investigation, the burnt vehicle was hijacked in Calcutta [Bushbuckridge in] October 2024. The Hawks' Serious Organised Crime Investigation in Secunda is currently investigating the case," said Mpumalanga Hawks spokesperson Lt-Col Magonseni Nkosi.
Source: Original
In response to an inquiry, Nkosi told Briefly News that Pretorious was attached to the Vehicle Crime Investigation Unit and had served 33 years in the force.
Provincial police spokesperson Lt-Col Jabu Ndubane told a Briefly News reporter the suspects will appear in the Ermelo Magistrate's Court on 20 January. Hawks Provincial Head Maj-Gen Nico Gerber applauded the multidisciplinary team's joint effort in ensuring the breakthrough.
Gerber said:
"It is a hard pill to swallow that one of our own had his life cut short in such a callous way. We' ll ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice.
"I applaud the members for their dedication to working timeously to ensure closure for the family and for them to [recognise that] his colleagues, through the arrests, honoured his life and service," said Gerber.
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Source: Briefly News
