The six suspects who were detained in relation to the kidnapping and murder of Kaizer Chiefs defender Luke Fleurs have had their cases rescheduled for September in order to allow for additional police investigations.
On their tenth appearance at the Roodepoort magistrate’s court were Ndumiso Ndura Moswane, 26, Fernando Nando Sive, 25, Nhlakanipho Dlamini, 21, Franky Xaba, 25, Maredi Mphahlele, 36, and Thembinkosi Hlomikhawu, 31.
The suspects are accused of robbery with aggravating circumstances, murder (accessory after the fact), and subverting the course of justice.
Bail was denied for the six suspects in May.
DNA test
Magistrate Marleen Nair adjourned the case to September 27, during Friday’s court proceedings, so that Hlomikhawu’s DNA could be tested.
The suspects remain in police custody.
Police are still busy with making a Section 205 application to access information on the suspects’ seized cellphones.
Additionally, they are still looking for the white BMW 1 Series that the alleged murderers allegedly drove away from the scene of the crime as well as the gun used to kill Fleurs.
The post-mortem results are still outstanding.
Fleurs was shot and killed in April during a hijacking. This happened at the Shell petrol station at the Constantia service centre in Roodepoort, Johannesburg.
The six suspects were arrested in Slovoville, Soweto, in April.
Vehicle found stripped in April
Police said Fleurs’ luxury red VW Golf 8 GTI vehicle was recovered in April, already stripped of its parts.
Police said they believe that the six suspects are part of a syndicate that is responsible for car hijackings across Gauteng. The search for more suspects is continuing.
During the suspects’ bail application in May, police said they did not have any evidence that placed the suspects at the crime scene.
The police also said that they could not directly link the suspects to the murder of Fleurs and the hijacking of his vehicle.
The investigating officer, detective sergeant Nare Benedict Moloto, said he could not convince the court that the suspects planned the murder and hijacking.
Suspects deny they killed Fleurs
According to Moloto, the suspects gave statements to the police in which they acknowledged having Fleurs’ red VW Golf 8 GTI so they could disassemble and sell its parts.
Moloto claimed that the suspects decided to take Fleurs’ car for themselves after witnessing it parked in front of someone’s yard for days.
The keys to Fleurs’ vehicle were found in the possession of the suspects. The suspects told the court that they did not kill Fleurs and did not rob him of his vehicle.
