A 36-year-old man who was due to testify in a murder case was kidnapped and yesterday found shot dead in the Vryheid area.

Vryheid Herald reports that police sources not authorised to speak to the media said information about the kidnapping in Mondlo was received on Thursday, prompting an urgent investigation. The man’s family told detectives they last saw him on Wednesday and had no idea where he had gone.

According to the sources, further information was received that night suggesting the suspect may have returned to the crime scene with the intention of destroying evidence by burning the body. Police waited for additional details about the exact location, but the follow-up information did not materialise.

Search operation

Yesterday, detectives continued their own search in the Vryheid policing area. Initial searches in a forested section yielded nothing. During a second phase of the operation, officers noticed something suspicious at the edge of the forest.

“When we got closer, we realised it was the body of the kidnapped witness,” a police source said.

Victim identified

The deceased was found with a gunshot wound to the head. His family later identified him as Sthembiso Buthelezi, who lived in the Madresini area in Mondlo.

Police believe the killing is linked to the fact that Buthelezi was a state witness in a Mondlo murder case scheduled to be heard in the Vryheid Regional Court in February.

Investigation continues

A case of kidnapping and murder has been opened. No arrests have been confirmed yet. The investigation is continuing.

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