Police have arrested two men linked to the assassination of KwaZulu-Natal ward councillor Phendukani Mabhida.
Mabhida served as the ward councillor for Ward 18 having been elected into the position in 2021.
Provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, said the pair, aged 31 and 34, were arrested during a routine patrol by Public Order Policing officers.
"Vigilant police officers stopped and searched the men and the two were found in possession of two firearms with filed-off serial numbers The suspects were arrested and charged for possession of unlicensed firearms. Further investigations by the Political Task Team positively linked the two to the murder of the councillor and the attempted murder of his sister," he said.
Mabhida was shot after two people went to his home, pretending to need his help on a matter.
Netshiunda said when the councillor got out of the house, the two opened fire at him.
"His sister intervened but she was also shot. The two victims were rushed to a local health facility where the councillor was certified dead on arrival," he said.
The men have further been linked to the murder of an induna, killed in Sundumbilio on January 25.