Three suspects arrested for alleged kidnapping and murder are set to appear in court today. Meloding police in Virginia, Free State, arrested the suspects and successfully rescued a victim from an abduction and attempted murder.

Bloemfontein Courant reports the incident occurred on Sunday when a 37-year-old man was kidnapped and brutally assaulted, allegedly by four suspects. He is currently recovering at Katleho Hospital.

According to provincial police spokesperson Lorraine Earle, the victim was awaiting takeaway food at a car wash in Meloding when four men approached him.

“He was waiting for his takeaway at a Meloding car wash when four men came up to him and said they were trying to find him. After violently dragging him to a car, the suspects viciously beat him with knobkerries. In addition, he was threatened with a gun, stabbed with a butcher knife, and strangled with a rope,” Earle says.

The victim was then taken to a remote farm, where the assault continued. Earle confirms the police acted swiftly to save the victim.

“The suspects allegedly threatened to kill him and dispose of his body in the Tikwe River. They tied him to a stone, and as the suspects began walking towards the river, a police patrol vehicle intervened, saving the victim and foiling the suspects’ plans,” she adds.

Three suspects, aged between 32 and 42, were arrested at the scene. The fourth suspect remains at large.

The court outcome was not yet known by time of publishing.