A Gauteng man allegedly linked to eight crimes, including the murder of a police officer in October 2021, was killed in a shootout with the police in KwaZulu-Natal on Sunday morning. Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal police had been struggling to find the alleged murder suspect.
On 29 May, the police offered a reward of R100 000 to anyone with information that could lead to the arrest of Mbuso Mdabazovela Biyela. Police received numerous tip-offs, and just five days after R100 000 was put up as a reward, Biyela was traced to a Sahlumbe village in Weenen, KwaZulu-Natal.
“The team that traced Biyela to Sahlumbe (Ematsheleni) village in Weenen, KwaZulu-Natal, comprised of provincial members from serious and violent crimes, a tracking team, Soweto district crime intelligence, and Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal tactical response teams,” Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili said.
“The team approached the house at about 3am, where Biyela was hiding but when he spotted them, he started firing shots towards the team members who were forced to retaliate. Biyela was fatally wounded. None of the members sustained injuries.”
She said the officers found an unlicensed firearm and ammunition in the house. Biyela was previously arrested in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng for murder in August 2020 and October 2021, but he was able to make an escape from custody.
“He was positively linked to five Jabulani cases of murder committed between October 2021 and March 2022. He was further linked to a Lenasia December 2017 case of hijacking, a Lenasia South December 2017 case of possession of unlicenced firearm and a KwaZulu-Natal August 2020 case of murder,” police said.
Source: News24, IOL, ENCA, Sowetan Live, image from