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Men who raped, robbed music video crew believed to be Zama Zamas, says Bheki Cele

Police minister Bheki Cele has announced that men who are suspected of raping women who were shooting a music video were illegal miners.
Police minister Bheki Cele has announced that men who are suspected of raping women who were shooting a music video were illegal miners.
Image: 123RF/tinnakornlek

Police minister Bheki Cele says the men who raped eight women in Krugersdorp are believed to be Zama Zamas who have been terrorising the local community.

Speaking at a media briefing held at the ANC policy conference in Nasrec, Cele said there were 22 people who were part of a music video shooting at a mine dump in Krugersdorp on Wednesday. Of the figure, 12 were women and 10 were men.

He said about two hours after their arrival, the team were attacked by 10 men wearing blankets and balaclavas. When the group which had come to shoot the music video tried to run away, the armed men shot at them.

“They were forced to sleep down and the other 10 men came and started to rape them.

“Eight women were raped. I have the names but I cannot give them but one woman was raped by 10 men. The other one was raped by eight, the other one was raped by six. The women range from the age of 19 to 35. They were robbed. They took their stuff, shoes and stripped them naked. Those 10 men were left in underpants. One [of the men] was stripped even underpants,” Cele said

He said most of the women come from Alex, Soweto and some of the suburbs in the province and are models who had gone there to be part of the shooting of a music video. He added that the men are believed to be foreign nationals who are members of a Zama Zamas.

He added that the national commissioner has put a team that has started operations in the area and have started making arrests.

“Police have been told that they cannot come back without them, in whatever form. We will be there in the next hour to see how far have they taken the operation. I’m told the operation is going well. We’ve told the national commissioner to send all the resources to be able to respond decisively on this  matter.

“It looks like they are foreign nationals but basically they are Zama Zamas. They have left that job to rob people house-to-house including this terrible incident that they have done,’ Cele said.

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