Police in KwaZulu-Natal have arrested three suspects in connection with the kidnapping and murder of seven family members in Melmoth.
The victims, aged between 20 and 83, were allegedly abducted from their home in Newtown on Tuesday night before being killed. Their bodies were later discovered in a field in Melmoth.
According to South African Police Service spokesperson Robert Netshiunda, the crime came to light when the family’s domestic worker arrived at the residence on Wednesday morning and found signs of a break-in, with no one inside the house.
Police were alerted, prompting a coordinated investigation involving multiple units. Officers traced initial leads to the Hlomendlini area, where two suspects were arrested on Wednesday afternoon. One of them was found in possession of a cellphone belonging to one of the victims.
Further information led investigators to the Dendetu area in Sundumbili, where a third suspect was apprehended. Police recovered a firearm believed to have been used in the crime, along with a total of eleven cellphones linked to the victims.
Netshiunda confirmed that it was later established that one of the suspects had been employed by the victims.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspects allegedly broke into the home, restrained the family and abducted them. Police further allege that the suspects demanded banking details and personal identification numbers (PINs) from some of the victims, after which several transactions were made from their accounts.
Authorities say three of the victims were shot, while the remaining four were stabbed to death.
The suspects, aged 21, 26 and 28, are expected to appear in the KwaDukuza Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
Investigations are ongoing.