Deputy Minister of Police Polly Boshielo Devastated by the Deaths of the 3 SAPS Constables

• The Deputy Minister of Police, Polly Boshielo, pledged that the South African Police Service would work tirelessly to piece together the events leading to the three officers' deaths
• Boashielo was speaking at their memorial service, which was held in Bloemfontein in the Free State on 6 May 2025
• Boahiel said the deaths of the officers touched her deeply, and she could not imagine the pain of a mother losing her child

Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, covered criminal activities, cash-in-transit heists, kidnappings, taxi violence, police investigations, police shootouts and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.

BLOEMFONTEIN, FREE STATE — The Deputy Minister of Police, Polly Boshielo, said the deaths of the three South African Police Service (SAPS) officers who disappeared on 23 April 2025 and were discovered six days later were difficult to swallow, and it touched her deeply.

What did Polly Boshielo say?

According to SABC News, Boshielo spoke at Constables Cebekhulu Linda, Boipelo Senoge, and Keamogetswe Buys's memorial service in Bloemfontein on 6 May 2025.

The service was held a week after SAPS divers recovered the trio's bodies from the Hennops River after they went missing on 25 April while travelling from Bloemfontein to Polokwane, Limpopo, for their deployment. Senior police officers have ruled their deaths as accidents as the investigation continues.

Boshielo said that the police had hoped that they would find the officers alive. She said when she arrived at the scene, she realised that the death of the officers resonated with her.

"I am saying this because no parent must bury their child. It should be the other way around, that we must bury our parents," she said.

Boshielo also promised that the police would get to the bottom of the case and uncover what led to their untimely deaths. The police initially opened a case of kidnapping and hijacking on 23 April and mobilised their resources to locate the three officers. Their phones were off, and the vehicle's tracking system was deactivated.

The police also offered a R350,000 reward for anyone providing information that could lead to their discovery. However, days later, they found five bodies in the Hennops River, and three of them belonged to the police officers.

What you need to know about the officers' deaths

• The South African Police Service located the officers' bodies and retrieved them from the Hennops River in Tshwane on 29 April
• Two days later, they recovered the vehicle that the officers travelled in when they disappeared
• The deputy national commissioner of investigations, General Shadrack Sibiya, said that the officers were speeding and driving in wet conditions when they died
• Paul Senoge, Boipelo Senoge's father, opened up about his daughter and said he was happy that the divers found the car that his daughter was travelling in with her colleagues
• However, the family of Cebekhulu Linda said they wanted answers about the events that led to the accident that killed their son

Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae slams socialmedia users

In a related article, Briefly News reported that Free State Premier Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae took a swipe at social media users during the officers' memorial service. She criticised them and called them insensitive.

Letsoha-Mathae called on members of the public to help heal the family members' wounds. She said they must allow the police to investigate the case.

Source: Briefly News