Pretoria – The body of 31-year-old Refiloe Malope, who was abducted in Limpopo in May, has been recovered from the depths of a disused mine shaft in Benoni, Gauteng.
Specialised equipment was used to retrieve the body of the slain woman on Monday afternoon.
“The operation, comprising the Gauteng search and rescue units of the South African Police Service from Benoni, Tshwane, Sedibeng, West Rand K9, Tshwane K9, Ekhuruleni and Tshwane municipality disaster teams, the Limpopo provincial organised crime unit, provincial crime scene investigation and Hlogotlou detectives, resumed with the retrieval efforts from 9am (on Monday) morning,” said Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo.
“After four hours, the body was brought to the ground and that’s when it was positively identified as that of the missing Malope.”
Police said another unidentified body was also retrieved from the same mine shaft and investigations are under way to determine the identity and the cause of death.
On Friday, the search was halted after the body was spotted at the bottom of the mine shaft with the use of a special camera.
The retrieval required specialised equipment which had to be sourced.
Provincial commissioner of police in Limpopo, Lieutenant-General Thembi Hadebe has commended the co-operation of all the operatives that were involved in the retrieval operation.
“Our search efforts led us to Gauteng province and we hope that the recovery of Malope’s remains will bring closure to the family as much as it strengthens our case against the accused,” she said.
“I would to thank all the teams that were involved in this challenging task for their cooperation, especially the Gauteng search and rescue units which were led and co-ordinated by the provincial head of rapid response services, Brigadier Samuel Killian.”
Meanwhile the two accused, identified as police Sergeant Thabo Letudi Moses Mokoana, 40, attached to the Benoni police station and Modirelwa Maxwell Mokoana, 42, are set to return to the Nebo Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, for formal bail application.
The duo are facing charges of kidnapping, murder and defeating the ends of justice.
The Gauteng-based police officer and an alleged accomplice last week made an appearance before the court, charged with the kidnapping and murder of Malope.
The 31-year-old woman was taken by force, by two people, who were seen shoving her into the boot of a vehicle. The abduction took place at Kgaphamadi village under the Hlogotlou policing area in Limpopo on May 9.
In May, IOL reported that the woman was allegedly approached by one of the suspects, under the pretext that he was looking for assistance as his vehicle broke down in the village.
When they arrived at the car, the second suspect suddenly emerged and the two forcibly put the woman into the boot of the car.
IOL