Johannesburg - He resided in secure, high-walled homes, watched over by surveillance cameras.
Security at Sam Moloto’s homes in Diepkloof and Alan Manor is so tight that an intruder would have difficulty getting in.
Whoever wanted him dead knew that – which is probably why they waited until he left the safety of his home and then pounced.
Moloto’s burnt remains were found on the N1 in Maraisburg on Tuesday night.
The 58-year-old was shot several times. He was found inside his burnt-out vehicle at about 8pm.
It is not known whether he was dead already when the car was set alight.
The motive for his killing is a mystery that police are trying to solve.
When officers arrived at the crime scene, Moloto’s Fiat Palio was still in flames and empty cartridges were scattered around the scene.
“It seems as if the car that was burnt was forced off the road and the driver was shot,” Lieutenant Kay Makhubela said. “We say so because there were empty cartridges next to it,” he added.
Makhubela said it also seemed that a passing motorist saw the fire, got out of his car and approached the burning car.
“He was also shot and killed instantly. He was found lying next to his own car with gunshot wounds in his upper body. There were about eight cartridges at the scene.”
Makhubela said the second man was found outside his car. There were also bullet holes in his Ford Bantam.
Some people believe that the 36-year-old man must have stopped to try to help whoever was inside the burning car, when he was killed.
Joburg Emergency Services spokeswoman Nana Radebe said that when they arrived on the scene, they found Moloto’s vehicle on fire and did not think there was anyone inside.
“We started to extinguish the fire and realised there was a person inside. He was not burnt beyond recognition and we saw that he had been shot,” she said.
On Wednesday, many people kept arriving at Moloto’s Alan Manor home to pay their respects.
Relatives, including his two brothers, got into a car and left for the mortuary.
The family did not want to speak to the media on Wednesday, saying they were still in mourning.
A source said Moloto used to be a police officer and worked for the Organised Crime Unit before resigning about five years ago.
Some of Moloto’s shocked neighbours said he had recently bought another house in Diepkloof, Soweto, but had not moved in.
He was renovating it at the time of his death, they said.
Makhubela said the police had opened a case of double murder. He urged people who may have witnessed the crimes to assist the police with information.
The Star