EASTERN CAPE - HAWKS KILL ZIMBABWEAN NATIONAL IN R1 MILLION RANSOM DRAMA

A suspect has been shot and killed during a rescue operation by the Hawks at Tyumbu village outside Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. The deceased is a Zimbabwean national.

Two other suspects in their 20s, one from Zimbabwe, have been arrested. They are alleged to have kidnapped a 24-year-old businessman on Monday and demanded ransom of R1 million. He’s been rescued.

Eastern Cape police have rescued Mthatha businessman from five days of captivity at the hands of his alleged kidnapper’s. They demanded a ransom of one-million rand from the family and threatened to kill him within two days.

A shoot-out ensued between the police and the suspects at the scene where the money was to be handed over. One suspect, a Zimbabwe national, died on the scene. Two others have been arrested.

“Today, police went to the scene where they said they want to meet with the police to give them money. They fired some shots to the police and then one of the guys died. He is a Zimbabwean and the arrested man is a Zimbabwean guy and the other one is from Libode. We would like to thank the community of Ngqwarha for assisting us in arresting these suspects as they tried to escape the arrest,” says Dineo Koena who is the Police spokesperson.

Family spokesperson and business partner, Sizwe Kupelo says they were losing hope daily when the death threats from the kidnappers intensified.

“It has been a week of hell, a very traumatic week being threatened almost on daily basis, having to raise a huge amount of money because they demanded a ransom. We had to raise a million rand within a week. They gave us only two days on the first day and we bought time. It was even worse yesterday because we were ready to give them money with the help of the SAPS of this country, they became very aggressive,” says Kupelo.

via - SABC