Picture: Some of the items confiscated during operation/Supplied  

By OBAKENG MAJE

A total of 172 arrests for various crimes such as dealing in drugs, illegal dealing in liquor, possession of drugs, robbery aggravating, attempted murder, assault GBH, assault common, burglary, theft of/from motor vehicle, malicious damage to property, illicit mining as well as illegal migrants.

Northern Cape police spokesperson, Colonel Cherelle Ehlers said the Detectives traced and arrested 119 wanted suspects in connection with crimes including business robbery, murder, rape, and assault GBH.

“During the execution of the operation, several items were confiscated including liquor, cash, cellular phones, computers, copper cable, counterfeit goods, dangerous weapons, and drugs. Operation Shanela will continue unabated on a weekly basis to address crime trends in identified hotspot areas.

“The Northern Cape SAPS multi-disciplinary high-density operation, termed Operational Shanela continues to address priority crimes in hotspot areas throughout the province,” Ehlers said.

She further said the weekly actions commenced on 12 October until 15 October 2023. Ehlers added that the police joined forces with the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), the Traffic Department, the Department of Home Affairs, and the Department of Transport to clamp down on crime throughout the province.

“We have executed a total number of 9116 actions with an emphasis on illegal firearms, murders, damage to essential infrastructure, crimes committed against women and children, house robbery, and housebreaking and aggravating robbery.

“The actions included the searching of persons and vehicles during stop and search actions, high visibility patrols, vehicle checkpoints, roadblocks, tracing of wanted suspects, compliance inspections at liquor outlets, second-hand goods dealers and scrapyards, compliance inspections at firearm dealers, visits to spaza shops and farm visits,” said Ehlers.

Meanwhile, the Northern Cape Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Koliswa Otola, encouraged the Provincial and District SAPS Management to reinforce efforts and to continue eradicating crime in the province. Otola also expressed her appreciation towards all officers and members, who contributed towards the success of the operation.

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Picture: The murder-accused person, Bongane Shebi in court

By OBAKENG MAJE

A murder case against a man who is accused of killing a nurse, Iris Mohokare (47) in cold blood in Ipelegeng Township, near Schweizer Reneke will resume in Schweizer Reneke Magistrate’s Court today. Bongane Shebi (25) allegedly murdered Mohokare in her rented backroom during a suspected robbery on 12 October 2022.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson in North West, Henry Mamothame said, Mohokare’s bloodied body was discovered by her sister with her throat slit open on 13 October 2022.

“She subsequently informed the police, who immediately started investigating. Shebi became a person of interest after police received information while doing investigations.

“He was spotted walking on with bloodied clothes not far from where the incident took place. The police then started looking for the accused and ultimately arrested him on 15 October 2022,” Mamothame said.

He further said upon arrival at the police station, Shebi informed the police that, he wanted to tell the truth.

Mamothame added that the accused was subsequently taken in for a confession to be obtained and later took the police to where he had thrown away the bloodied clothes he was wearing.

“Shebi alleged that he was in the company of another person, but the motive only became clear in the accused person’s confession.

“He said they were intending to rob the deceased. However, Shebi alleged he is not the one who stabbed the deceased, but the person he was with,” said Mamothame.

Mamothame said, the police have indicated that the evidence obtained at the scene, shows that only one person was at the scene at the time of the commissioning of the crime.

Meanwhile, the North West MEC for Health, Madoda Sambatha condemned the brutal killing of Mohokare. Sambatha said, Mohokare was recently promoted to the position of Facility Manager at Charon Clinic.

“Mohokare’s murder is devastating and we called on communities to protect women. As the department, we condemn the atrocity in the strongest terms. Mohokare was murdered only two days after assuming her new role.

“It is an unfortunate and disturbing reality that women in this country are no longer safe. Our communities and homes have become a haven for criminals, who prey on women and young girls,” he said.

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Picture: The deceased, Thabiso Mothibedi who was killed in cold blood/Facebook  

By OBAKENG MAJE

A murder case against four accused persons has been postponed to 21 and 22 February 2023 by the Taung Regional Court. The case was supposed to be heard on 12 October 2023, however, the matter was postponed due to the absence of the lawyer of the defense. A convicted rapist, Bakang Katong (32), Thabang Lenyai (23) and Katlego Mosimege (31), and Phenyo Katong (34) were arrested more than a year ago for allegedly killing Thabiso Mothibedi (35) in cold blood.

They accused Mothibedi of stealing R20 000 cash and cigarettes worth R600 from Katong’s house in Manthe village, near Taung.

The North West police spokesperson, Capt Sam Tselanyane said the preliminary investigation revealed that on 29 April 2022, the deceased was at Longaneng village in Taung, when the accused fetched and ferried him back to Manthe village.

“Upon arrival, the deceased was allegedly chained to a generator and assaulted. After the assault, the victim was reportedly transported to a local clinic by the accused, however, he was declared dead upon arrival. The accused were arrested and charged with murder,” Tselanyane said.

On 1 May 2022, the community members were up in arms and torched three houses and a bakkie belonging to Katong’s family. The magistrate, Buti Zulu has excused himself from the case. This comes after Zulu sentenced Bakang to eight years imprisonment in a rape case a few months ago.

A new magistrate has taken over the case.

Meanwhile, the court also heard that there was a letter from the community members requesting that the murder case be transferred to the North West High Court in Mahikeng owing to its nature, however, that was not entertained.

It is alleged that the state is set to call seven witnesses, while the accused persons will call four witnesses. There were also allegations that the accused persons intended to plead guilty. However, it is yet unknown if that is still their intention.

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Picture: The firearm that was confiscated during a search/Supplied 

By OBAKENG MAJE

Three suspects aged between 23 and 25 have been arrested after allegedly committing a string of business robberies, including other crimes in Letlhabile. The trio was arrested at Maboloka village, near Letlhabile outside Brits by the Brits Trio Task Team together with Crime Intelligence on 10 October 2023.

The North West police spokesperson, Lieutenant Col Amanda Funani said this comes after the police received a tip-off about the whereabouts of the suspects who allegedly terrorised the community.

Funani said the suspects were arrested at their different residences. She further said, that during the arrests, the police also conducted searches at the suspects’ places leading to the confiscation of a black revolver with eight live ammunition, different types of cigarettes, different types of cell phones, an airtime vending machine, a silver blank pistol, crowbar as well as clothes, which the suspect allegedly used during the robbery.

“The police also found and seized a blue Samsung A10 cell phone and razor blades. Sello Tsietsi Nyathi, Matodzi Shuma, and Bonginkosi Masuku briefly appeared before the Brits Magistrate’s Court on 12 October 2023.

“They were charged for possession of suspected stolen property, three counts of business robbery, and possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition. They are expected to appear before the same court again on 16 October 2023,” she said.

Meanwhile, the North West Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Sello Kwena, applauded the police for a sterling job.

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Picture: North West athlete, Stephen Mokoka came second at Sanlam Cape Town marathon/Facebook

By OBAKENG MAJE

The defending champion of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, Stephen Mokoka (38) was unlucky to come second during the 2023 Sanlam Cape Town marathon yesterday. The award-winning athlete who was born and bred in Ramatlabama village, outside Mahikeng took home a silver medal.

Mokoka was only four seconds behind the winner, Ethiopian, Adane Kebede Gebre and crossed the finish line in 2:11:30. Gebre finished the race at 2:11:26 mark, while the third position was secured by the Kenyan athlete, Benard Kipkorir with 2:11:48.

Mokoka who won the race for the third time last year said then: “I want to thank my sponsors such as Boxers, Nike and Athletic Club and people who have been supporting me throughout. I have won the Cape Town marathon for the third time and it was good that it happened in the country.

“There were individuals including runners from Gauteng and North West, who came here to support me. It was the toughest race and I actually wanted to run a little bit quicker compared to how I ran.”

Mokoka further said runners from Gauteng and North West, are privileged to be running in areas with high altitudes because when they run in areas that are below the sea level their lungs get the time to breathe.

According to Wikipedia, Mokoka is a South African long-distance runner, who competes in races ranging from 3000 metres to 50km distance. He formerly held the 50km world record and is a four-time medalist at the Universiade.

Mokoka has also represented South Africa internationally in road, cross-country, and track events. He represented South Africa in the marathon at the 2012 London Olympics.

“Mokoka began competing internationally in 2005 and came ninth over 10,000 metres at the 2005 Summer Universiade. At the African student championships in 2006, he was third over 5000 metres and finished as runner-up in the 10,000 m. He won back-to-back South African universities titles (2006/2007) and won his first global-level medal at the 2007 Summer Universiade, taking the bronze medal in the 10,000m.

“He gained his first senior international selections the following year, running at the 2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and the 2008 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.”

Wikipedia added that, Mokoka made significant improvements to his times in the 2009 season, including a 5000 m personal best of 13:44.22 min at the Yellow Pages Durban meeting and a 10,000 m track best of 28:48.73 min. It says, he won the 10,000 m national title in March and then managed to finish in 32nd place at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.

“He also improved on the roads, taking the national 10K and half marathon titles with bests of 28:21 min and 61:26 min, respectively. Having already won the Two Oceans Half Marathon earlier that year, he established himself as a top-level competitor at the 2009 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships by coming in eighth place.

“At the 10-mile Great South Run in England, it came down to a sprint finish between Mo Farah and himself. Although he lost by a margin of one second, he set a South African record of 46:26 min for the distance.”

Wikipedia says in 2010, Mokoka retained his 10,000m track and road national titles and improved upon his previous year’s finish at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, coming 22nd overall. It says he made his first outing over the marathon distance in November of that year, running a time of 2:08:33 hours for fourth place at the JoongAng Seoul Marathon.

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Picture: An alleged stolen sheep found slaughtered/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

Three men have been arrested for allegedly stealing a Vandor sheep worth R2 200 in a kraal on a farm in Petrusville on Friday. The police said the incident allegedly took place at around 7pm. The Northern Cape police spokesperson, Sgt Molefi Shemane the police received a tip-off and managed to track down the suspects. Shemane further said the police also recovered the slaughtered sheep.

“Three suspects aged 18, 26, and 31 respectively, were arrested for stock theft and will appear in court soon. The police encouraged livestock owners to report suspicious persons to the police, local farm unions, and neighbours immediately.

“They are urged to ensure that their livestock are branded and making it easy to be identified. They are also urged to work together with the law enforcement agencies to address the root causes of stock theft,” he said.

Shemane added that a concerted effort is needed from all stakeholders. He said that working together, will combat livestock theft and safeguard the livelihoods of farmers across the province.

“The members of the public are encouraged to report any criminal activities to the nearest police station immediately and also report any stolen goods offered to them for sale.

“The crime stop number is 08600 10111 and can be called or either send an SMS anonymously to 32211 or use the MySAPS App. All information received will be treated confidentially,” said Shemane.

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By OBAKENG MAJE

Seven Nigerian nationals were arrested for conspiracy to commit murder. The suspects were arrested during a clandestine operation conducted by the members of Upington Border Police assisted by the Northern Cape Tactical Response Team(TRT) during the hours of Sunday morning.

The ZF Mgcawu District police spokesperson, Sgt Omphile Masegela said it is alleged that, the suspects conspired to kill certain police officials in Upington as they were posing a threat to their drug trafficking business. Masegela further said the men are allegedly known for drug trafficking in Upington and surrounding areas.

“It also came to light after their arrests that, they do not have legal documentation and are in contravention of the Immigration Act. The investigator received information, followed it up and preliminary investigations were conducted.

“A case was opened and subsequently, seven men between the ages of 34 and 45 were arrested. More charges in line with the Immigration Act will be added to the existing charge,” he said.

Masegela added that the suspects will appear in the Upington Magistrate’s Court on 16 October 2023.

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