Mankweng – Two men have been arrested for allegedly "terrorising" Limpopo university students, provincial police said on Sunday.
The provincial crime intelligence co-ordination team and Mankweng detectives conducted a crime intelligence-led operation over the weekend that led to the arrest of two suspects both aged 37 in Mankweng Unit D, Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said.
"The two were allegedly terrorizing University of Limpopo students staying outside the campus by raping and robbing them of their belongings. These crimes agitated the Mankweng community and the students who on two occasions marched to the local police station to hand in the memorandum demanding the arrest of the culprits," he said.
"Some of the crimes were allegedly committed with impunity. During October last year... the suspect allegedly went to an apartment, knocked at the door, and demanded the student to open, threatening to break it in case she didn't. The victim screamed for help but the suspect shot the neighbour who came to the rescue."
On Thursday February 2, a 20-year-old student was attacked in her room, raped, and robbed of a laptop and cellphone. In another incident that took place in September last year, the suspect allegedly forced entry into a room and found a student with her boyfriend. He robbed them of a laptop and cellphone at gunpoint.
"He thereafter dragged the female student out, shot and injured the boyfriend, and thereafter raped her." Police received information and subsequently arrested two suspects.
Various items were found during the arrests, including a 9mm pistol and ammunition, five laptops, and six cellphones, Mojapelo said. Limpopo police commissioner Lt-Gen Nneke Ledwaba commended the officers for their dedication in pursuing the culprits.
He also thanked community members for their continued support in providing police with valuable information. The arrested men were being linked to a number of cases in the area, including rape, attempted murder, and house robbery.
They would appear in the Mankweng Magistrate's Court on Monday, Mojapelo said.