By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
A seventh person has been arrested in connection with the murder of rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and his friend, businessman Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane.
“The 30-year-old suspect was arrested today (Wednesday). The arrest brings the total number of suspects arrested for the murders to seven,” said police spokesperson Robert Netshiunda.
On Tuesday, police top brass announced that six suspects had been arrested in connection to the murders.
The suspects were arrested at different intervals, and the police kept mum to not raise any alarm for other possible suspects that they were tailing.
AKA was followed by the hitmen from the airport in Durban to the Hilton Hotel, then to Wish restaurant on Florida Road, where he was assassinated in February last year.
Exhibits recovered during the arrests include four vehicles, firearms linked to the the murders and empty cartridges.
Police Minister Bheki Cele acknowledged that the killings of AKA and his friend, which was caught on CCTV cameras, disturbed many people in the country, which has one of the highest murder rates in the world.
“I hope South Africans will sleep better after this,” he said.
Reflecting on the motive that minister said it will “come out in court”.
Five suspects will appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Thursday while the police await the extradition of two more suspects from Eswatini.
AKA began his musical career as part of the rap group Entity before he launched his solo career, winning several awards in South Africa for his music.
He was also celebrated internationally, with several nominations for awards from Black Entertainment Television (BET) and MTV Europe. He received a posthumous honour at the BET Hip Hop Awards last year.