Zimbabwean national sought over murder of two people in Limpopo

Two people appeared this week in the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court in connection with the murder of Ocean Basket seafood restaurant owner Lizette Deacon and her mother Hettie, the NPA said on Tuesday.

Lazarus Mahlo and Sophy Mmako appeared in Polokwane Magistrate’s Court [on Monday] on charges of two counts of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and kidnapping respectively.

Sophy Mmako, who was a domestic worker for the slain Deacons, appeared in court on Monday with her co-accused, her 41-year-old boyfriend Lazarus Mahlo.

“Lazarus Mahlo and Sophy Mmako appeared in Polokwane Magistrate’s Court [on Monday] on charges of two counts of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and kidnapping respectively,” said Limpopo spokesperson for the NPA Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi.

“A team of investigators made a breakthrough on arresting two more suspects, Lazarus Mahlo aged 41 and a domestic worker Sophy Mmako aged 51 who was employed by the Polokwane businesswoman deceased, Lizette and her mother Hettie Deacon.”

Both accused were arrested on Friday September 18 in different places.

Mmako was arrested in Polokwane, while Mahlo was nabbed in Tembisa, Gauteng province.

Malabi-Dzhangi said the the South African Police Service is hunting for a Zimbabwean national named Owen who uses different surnames.

“The police are also calling on Owen to avail himself at the nearest police station as it is believed he might assist in the ongoing investigations. Owen, who is a Zimbabwean, uses either of the following as surnames – Setsiba, Makutara or Mbedzi.

“Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Owen is requested to contact the nearest police station or the Crime stop number 0860010111,” Malabi-Dzhangi said.

“The matter was postponed to September 25. Both accused will join the other two co-accused Abibi Hamid and Casper Mudau.”

The bodies of 55-year-old Lizette and her 70-year-old mother were found with stab wounds in an abandoned vehicle on the R37 next to the Kushcke off-ramp earlier this month.

It is alleged that the two women had been attacked in their home in Welgelegen near the Cycad Estate in Polokwane, then loaded into an SUV.

The first two suspects Hamid and Mudau were arrested last week. They appeared in the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday last week on charges relating to two counts of murder and house robbery.

“Hamid, a Zimbabwean national, was also charged under the Immigration Act “as he is in the country illegally,” police said at the time.

-African News Agency