Two More Suspects Arrested for Murder of 83-Year-Old Reverend

On Monday police allegedly arrested two more suspects for the murder of 83-year-old reverend Joseph Hollanders. The reverend’s body was found at his home on his church premises in Bodibe Village in the North West on January 13.

Two suspects aged 20 and 28, were charged with murder and appeared in the Itsoseng Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday. The first suspect aged 23, was arrested in his home in Bodibe Village.

Reports say that a cellular phone, allegedly belonging to the victim, was found in the first suspect’s possession. More of the reverend’s personal items were seized at a house in Bodibe Village.

News 24 reports: “According to information available at this stage, reports suggest that the victim’s body, with hands and feet tied up, was found by a community member who alerted the police”.

Police spokesperson Colonel Adéle Myburgh told News24: “Since the incident was reported, police have been working around the clock and managed to arrest the first suspect two days later. The 23-year-old, Thaba Norman Maseko, appeared before the Itsoseng Magistrate’s Court on January 17, on a charge of murder and was remanded in custody until January 25”.

Reverend Hollanders was a Belgian national and had been a missionary in South Africa for over 50 years.