Six suspects have been arrested in connection with the murders of South African rapper Kiernan Forbes, also known as AKA, and his close friend Tebello “Tibz” Motshoane.
AKA and his friend were gunned down outside a restaurant in Durban a year ago.
Lt Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, the KwaZulu-Natal provincial police commissioner, said hitmen were paid to target AKA but no motive has been revealed yet.
He said,
“It was clear that AKA was monitored from the airport and Tibz was not the intended target in the murder on Florida Road in Durban,” said in a press briefing on Tuesday night.
“We know they were paid for this,”
Lt Gen Mkwananzi added.
He said that the six accused men played different roles in the plot to kill AKA and some of them were also linked to other murder cases.
Exhibits recovered during the arrests include four vehicles, firearms linked to the murders of AKA and Motshoane and empty cartridges.
The suspects, all aged below 36, will appear in court by Thursday.
Confirming the arrest, Minister of Police Bheki Cele acknowledged that the killings of AKA and his friend, which were caught on CCTV cameras, disturbed many people in the country.
“I hope South Africans will sleep better after this,” he said.
“We are all interested to know what the motive was. It is very clear that it was not a case of someone waking up angry in the morning. You can see that in the build-up and coordination.”
AKA began his musical career as part of the rap group Entity before he launched his solo career, winning several awards both in South Africa and internationally.
