Two killed in separate weekend murders
One of the murders is suspected to have been a targeted killing while the other murder saw a body found dumped in the bushes.
Image: Gareth Wilson
A man was gunned down and the body of another was found in the Motherwell area in two separate killings at the weekend.
The latest murder saw Masibulele Sivuyile Dlepu, 28, shot multiple times while standing outside his home in Makangiso Street, Motherwell, at 3am on Monday.
Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said two men, wearing hoodies, walked past the house and started shooting.
“At the time, the deceased was standing in the yard. Reasons why he was outside remain unknown and are being investigated,” he said.
“The two men shot him several times.”
Beetge said a family member inside the house walked out, saw Dlepu on the ground and rushed him to hospital, where he died on arrival.
Motive for the murder remains unknown as nothing was stolen.
“The men did not say anything and apparently just walked up and started shooting. It is suspected that this is a targeted murder,” he said.
“Robbery has been ruled out at this stage as there was no attempt to steal anything from him during the incident.”
This comes after the body of an unidentified man was found in the bushes near the Old Grahamstown Road between Swartkops and Motherwell on Saturday.
The discovery was made at about midday when a cattle herder found the body.
Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said the man was estimated to be in his forties.
“Based on the rigor mortis, it is suspected that he was killed sometime between Thursday and Saturday,” he said.
“It is unclear if he was killed somewhere else and his body dumped there or if that is where the murder took place.
"He had no valuables on him at the time so it remains unknown if anything was stolen."
Beetge said a preliminary investigation revealed that the cause of the death was blunt force trauma to the head.
“No murder weapon was found nearby,” he said.
Asked if the murders were linked, Beetge said that nothing suggested that the two killings were related.
Anyone with information on either murder can contact detective Captain Frank van der Berg 082-394-5957.
Cases of murder are being investigated.