OWN CORRESPONDENT, Pretoria | Tuesday
MURDER and Robbery detectives have launched a massive investigation into the execution-style murder of four people found tied up and shot on the side of a deserted road in The Reeds, Pretoria.
The four, believed to be between 20 and 30 years of age, were found slumped in an abandoned car by a passerby at 1am on Tuesday when he stopped to investigate a blue Kia Shuma parked on the side of the road.
The bodies had gunshot wounds to their heads and their hands tied behind their backs. They had been shot at point-blank range with a 9mm pistol. Three cartridges were found on the scene.
The women’ hands had been tied with shoelaces and the men’s with nylon rope. All four of them had been blindfolded with plastic bags.
Detectives, a pathologist, forensic and ballistics experts have been at the scene since early this morning, lifting fingerprints, taking photos and searching for other clues.
The bodies were found in circumstances suggesting that someone may have driven them there – there was no one in the driver’s seat, one woman and the two men were seated in the back of the car, while the other woman was found lying on the passenger side of the vehicle, on the ground.
An ATM withdrawal slip for the Standard Bank was found in the car. A withdrawal had been made in Braamfontein in Johannesburg sometime on Monday night. The petrol tank had also been filled.
Police suspect the victims were killed somewhere else and then driven to the desolate area. They have not been identified yet, but the ATM slip will help to identify at least one of the deceased.
Police also expect to discover who the car belongs to. The vehicle had Cape Town number plates.