JOHANNESBURG – The bodies of seven people who were brutally shot dead at a Free State farm were discovered by a farm owner on Friday morning.
The seven bodies were of at least six women and a young man, all believed to be farm workers at a Kestel farm, near Harrismith in the Free State.
The farm owner made the horrific discovery of seven butchered bodies of farm workers inside his house on a farm in Kestell.
The lifeless bodies of six women and a young man, who were apparently shot and brutally killed, were found in the early hours inside a house on a farm in the Lismore Farm District in Kestell.
The names and ages of the deceased are currently unknown.
Police have launched a manhunt for the alleged killers, while authorities admit that the number of suspects and the motive for the killing are unknown at this stage.
Free State police provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Baile Motswenyane has ordered an urgent mobilisation of maximum resources to ensure that the perpetrators are found.
Motswenyane has urged that anyone who may have any information on the killings to contact Colonel Ben Bolsiek, of the Provincial Organised Crime unit, at 082 466 8530.
"I have instructed the team to work around the clock and let me warn the perpetrators that they can run, but ultimately, the mighty hand of the law will catch up with them,“ said Motswenyane.
"Our condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in this horrible manner,“ he added.
Information can also be provided on Crime Stop 08600 10111, or via the MySAPS App.
IOL