SAPS and AfriForum Successfully Working Together Leads to Senzo Meyiwa Breakthrough

The murder of Bafana Bafana Captain Senzo Meyiwa (27) was not a robbery go wrong, as initially suspected, but a targeted killing, AfriForum revealed this evening at a press briefing in Pretoria.

While praise was heaped on the South African Police Service (SAPS) for working with AfriForum in the past few months, and for their breakthrough in the case and arrest of 5 suspects this morning, it transpires that the hunt is still on for the mastermind behind the murder. Senzo, who was Bafana Bafana captain at the time of his death, was fatally shot in the home of his girlfriend, SA musician Kelly Khumalo, in Vosloorus six years ago today, on 26 October 2014.

Adv Gerrie Nel said the involvement of AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit had helped the investigation progress – for instance, moving the case from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Joburg to the DPP Pretoria so that they could focus on key elements; and expressing their “dismay at the composition of the SAPS investigative team to police management” so that some changes were made to the team which allowed the investigation to progress.

Adv Nel says: “We now know it wasn’t a robbery went wrong, but in fact an assassination. The challenge now is to bring the mastermind behind the murder to justice.”

Senzo’s brother Sifiso, who participated in AfriForum’s media conference, expressed his family’s gratitude to both SAPS and AfriForum for the progress in the case, adding: “Although we are grateful that the arrests were made, we remain anxious that the mastermind was not arrested. In the view of the established cooperation between our legal team from AfriForum and the SAPS, we remain hopeful that more arrests will follow.”

Sifiso will attend tomorrow’s court hearing with Adv. Nel, Head of AfriForum’s Private Prosecutions Unit.

AfriForum said that the SAPS investigative team supplied a full description of the facts to AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit and Adv. Nel complimented the investigative team for their thorough investigation.

Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum, said the Meyiwa family and Senzo Meyiwa’s fans deserve to see justice for the murder. “The arrest of the suspects is the first step in the process to ensure justice is served, and AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit will continue to assist the Meyiwa family in the case,” said Kriel.

Kriel pointed out that the constructive cooperation between the SAPS and AfriForum in this case is also an example of what can be achieved when the SAPS and civil society work together in the battle against crime.