Johannesburg – Police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said the alleged rapist was arrested in the Tzaneen CBD after police received a tip-off.
The Limpopo police commissioner, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, commended the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit in Tzaneen for the meticulous investigation that led to the arrest of a 33-year-old man believed to be the serial rapist who has been terrorising the communities of Bolobedu and Tzaneen.
The police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said the alleged serial rapist was arrested at the Tzaneen CBD on Wednesday, December 28 after police received a tip-off.
“The police have been probing at least seven rape cases that were reported between 2015 and 2016 which they noticed had similar modus operandi,” Ledwaba said.
“Further investigation revealed that the perpetrator targeted unsuspecting women on their way to Tzaneen town who either did not know the area very well or he just offered some assistance and in doing so, he would lure them to secluded areas. The suspect would then rape and rob the victims of their belongings. One of the victims was hacked with a panga.”
The police added that the suspect also targeted women hitch-hiking on the R71 on the way to Phalaborwa and Giyani.
Ledwaba said the police used forensic evidence to link the suspect to the crimes.
The accused appeared in the Tzaneen Magistrate’s Court on Friday, December 30, 2022 on multiple charges of rape and robbery. He will appear before Bolobedu Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday and in Tzaneen on Friday for a formal bail application.
Police investigations continue.
The Star