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Police say they are maintaining peace in Umzimkhulu

Durban – A senior KwaZulu-Natal police official has denied claims that the deployment of extra officers in Umzimkhulu has stopped, saying there were "fresh members" in the area everyday.

Acting provincial commissioner Major General Bheki Langa on Friday said the deployment of additional police officers to focus on murders in the area was set to continue.

"Rumours that our deployments have been withdrawn in the Umzimkhulu area are not true. Police members are being rotated and fresh members will be deployed to continue with our operations."

He said that a crime intelligence unit was also on the ground gathering information to help with investigations.

"We urge the community to work together with these police officers that are deployed by providing information with regards to criminal activities in the area. We will continue with our mandate to protect and serve the community and we will ensure that there are no gaps during the rotation of police officers," Langa said.

The largely rural area came under the national spotlight following violent political killings, the most prominent being that of former ANC Youth League secretary general Sindiso Magaqa.

Hit list

Magaqa and Umzimkhulu municipality councillors Nonsikelelo Mafa and Jabu Msiya were attacked by gunmen in July.

Magaqa was critically injured and later died in hospital.

Msiya – who was with Magaqa when he was shot – this week told the Moerane Commission on political killings that prior to the shooting Magaqa had warned her to get a bodyguard because her name was on a hit list.

READ: Magaqa knew his name was on hit list, Moerane Commission told

"Magaqa said his intelligence had told him he was third on the hit list and I was number five," she said.

Msiya said she believed Magaqa was killed because the two of them had proposed a forensic investigation into an unfinished hall in her ward.

"We discovered that there was money used to buy material for the hall," she said. However, when they went to the hall they found that there was no building material.

"The matter went to council and the council took a decision not to conduct the forensic investigation because they were satisfied with the progress report they had received," she said.

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