Brigadier Vela Cele has been tasked with investigating the murder of slain musician Kiernan Jarryd Forbes, also known as AKA.
During the release of the Quarter 3 Crime Statistics on Friday, 17 February, Police Minister Bheki Cele stated that the brigadier, who has previously been recognized for his outstanding work, will lead the investigation.
According to IOL, Brigadier Cele is famous for tracking down Luyanda Botha in just 10 days. Botha was sentenced for the rape and murder of 19-year-old University of Cape Town (UCT) student Uyinene Mrwetyana.
At the 7th SAPS National Excellence Awards, Brigadier Cele was honoured for his role which led the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to finalise the murder and rape trial in three months.
Rapper AKA was brutally murdered with his friend and celebrity chef and author Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane outside Wish Restaurant on Florida Road in Durban on Friday, 10 February, when two gunmen opened fire that fateful night.
POLICE SIEZE CELLPHONES
Speaking at a media briefing during the release of the quarterly crime stats in Cape Town, KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, said that they have siezed cellphones that they believe will help shed some light into the investigation of the gruesome murder of both AKA and Tibz.
“We have collected cellphones, and we are busy downloading some data; we have also collected several videos from different CCTV cameras that we could find, and that could assist us.
“We have also received our completed ballistic reports from forensics. So, there’s quite a lot of work that the team is still busy with. The viewing of the footage and analysis of the material that has been downloaded from the cellphones are still ongoing.”
The two friends were laid to rest at the weekend during two separate private funerals in Johannesburg.
