A man arrested on December 21 in connection with the Saulsville Hostel mass shooting is expected to make his first appearance before the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court today, on 12 counts of murder and 13 counts of attempted murder.

National SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe confirmed the court appearance, stating that the 32-year-old suspect is one of three men believed to be responsible for the deadly attack.

“Police are still on a manhunt for the two outstanding suspects,” she said.

The arrest followed a two-week manhunt after a mass shooting at an illegal tavern operating from a hostel in Saulsville, which left 12 people dead and 13 others injured.

Mathe said the case was expected to later be transferred to the Pretoria magistrates court.

On Monday, provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili said the suspect was arrested in Limpopo on December 21 by the Gauteng Serious and Violent Crime Investigations team.

“The team, comprising various SAPS specialised units including Crime Intelligence, traced the suspect during their investigations as he was travelling to Botlokwa in Limpopo,” she said.

Investigators contacted police in Limpopo and provided them with descriptions of the suspect and the vehicle he was using.

According to Muridili, the suspect was intercepted by the Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 within the Westenburg policing precinct.

“During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders,” she said.

She added that the firearm will be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis as part of the ongoing investigation.

Muridili noted that the suspect also faces charges of possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

The charges stem from the horrific shooting that took place in the early hours of Saturday morning, December 6.

That morning, three suspects allegedly entered the hostel room where a group of people had gathered to drink and opened fire.

Initially, 11 people were killed during the attack, and 14 others were injured. The following day, the death toll rose to 12 after another victim succumbed to injuries in hospital.

Mathe confirmed at the time that the 12th victim died in hospital on Saturday afternoon.

“The shooting occurred shortly after 04:15, but police were only alerted at around 06:00, prompting an immediate response,” she said.

She explained that the gunmen fired indiscriminately, resulting in both targeted individuals and innocent bystanders being caught in the crossfire.

Among the deceased were three minors, aged three, 12, and 16.

At the time, Mathe said the motive for the attack was still under investigation and confirmed that maximum police resources had been deployed to identify and trace those responsible.

ALSO READ: One arrested for Saulsville hostel mass shooting which claimed 12 and left 13 injured

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