Police put R400 000 on the table in Kempton Park murders probe

A reward of R400 000 has been offered for information on the deaths of eight women whose bodies were found in Ekurhuleni, and a national task team has been set up to lead the investigation.

The reward was announced at a media briefing on Tuesday night, after a meeting between senior police officers and government leaders. It is one of several measures now in place as the investigation continues.

A task team, and a reward

A high-level multidisciplinary team will run the investigation, drawing officers from more than one unit rather than leaving the cases to a single station.

A reward of R400 000 is available to anyone whose information leads the police to an arrest and a prosecution in the case. That is a substantial sum, and it is meant to do what rewards are supposed to do: move somebody who knows something from silence to a police statement.

Operation Shanela moves into Kempton Park

Police will also increase their presence in Kempton Park and the surrounding areas through Operation Shanela, the national anti-crime operation that combines roadblocks, searches and high-visibility patrols.

Acting Police Minister Feroz Cachalia said the police intend to lock down the area in the coming weeks.

“The community will see the presence of the South African Police Service, and we will mobilise all necessary law enforcement capabilities, working with our communities,” he said.

That is a commitment made in public, and the people of Kempton Park will be able to measure it against what they see on their streets in the weeks ahead.

Who was in the room

The delegation at Tuesday’s meeting included Cachalia, Women Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga, Deputy Police Minister Polly Boshielo, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane.

That is the political weight of the national government and the provincial government in one room, which tells you how seriously the deaths are being treated. The presence of the women’s ministry alongside the police ministry is also a signal that these killings are being treated as what they are, violence against women, and not only as a cluster of murder dockets.

What the police have not said

The police have not said publicly whether they believe the eight deaths are linked, and they have not named a suspect or suspects. No arrests have been announced in connection with the deaths.

That absence is itself information. It tells the families of the eight women that the investigation is still at the stage where the police are asking for help rather than making an announcement, which is why the reward matters.

What this means for the people of Kempton Park

Eight women are dead, and the families left behind are waiting for answers that have not come yet. The reward and the task team are the state’s answer to that, and they are the right instruments for the moment.

A task team means the cases do not sit in one under-resourced station. Operation Shanela means patrols and roadblocks in the streets where the bodies were found. A reward means somebody who has been afraid to speak now has a reason to walk into a police station.

Anyone with information can contact the South African Police Service on the Crime Stop number, 08600 10111, or pass information anonymously through the My SAPS app. The police have made clear that information can be given anonymously.

What happens next

The investigation continues under the new task team, with Operation Shanela deployments expected in Kempton Park and the surrounding areas in the coming weeks. The reward remains open until the information it is meant to produce is handed over.

Source: eNCA, Reward offered for information on Ekurhuleni murders