By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola has confirmed that three of the five bodies found at the Hennops River in Centurion are those of the missing police officers.
Constables Cebekhulu Linda, 24, Keamogetswe Buys, 30, and Boipelo Senoge, 20, were last seen on April 23 at Engen garage near Grasmere toll plaza along the N1.
The police officers went missing last week while travelling from Bloemfontein to Limpopo, where they had been deployed.
Their vehicle, a Volkswagen Polo hatchback with registration number JCL 401 FS, along with their cellphones and tracking device, were switched off after they left the station.
Speaking during a media briefing at the river on Tuesday night, Masemola confirmed that the three members were found, together with two other bodies, including an admin clerk attached to the Lyttelton police station.
Masemola said the bodies of three police officers had been identified by their families at the Tshwane mortuary.
“It has been a difficult six days for members of the South African Police Service and affected families, as we searched everywhere for our three missing police officers,” Masemola said.
Masemola said a high-level team of investigators had worked tirelessly across Gauteng, the Free State, and Limpopo following all possible leads.
Their search eventually led to an area along the N1 highway, stretching from the Grasmere Toll Plaza past the Buccleuch interchange and onto John Vorster Drive in Centurion.
“We had hoped to find our three police officers safe, unharmed, and alive, but this is not the case, Masemola said.”
In February, Masemola announced that the country lost 21 more police officers from October to December 2024.
Police management have bemoaned the loss of skilled police officers to other working opportunities, with about 5 300 of them said to leave the South African Police Service (Saps) annually.
Saps requires 310 132 officers to meet its operational needs.
While some of the police officers leave the force for other opportunities, some are lost to murders.
According to a police report, 111 police officers were killed in the 2023/24 financial year, with 39 killed while on duty, while 72 were off duty.