SOUTH AFRICA: Cloete Murray, a 50-year-old South African investigator appointed to investigate state corruption allegations, was shot dead along with his son by unknown assailants in Johannesburg on Saturday.
Murray was driving in the city with his 28-year-old son Thomas when the incident occurred.
While Thomas succumbed to his injuries on the spot, emergency services took Murray to the hospital, where he passed away, according to police officials cited in media reports.
Murray held a significant position as a liquidator for the Bosasa company, which was involved in numerous government contract scams.
In his position, he looked closely at the company’s affairs and helped recover assets or report any criminality linked with them.
Bosasa was concluded to have been involved in scams related to government contracts, according to the Zondo Commission, which was set up in January 2018 by former president Jacob Zuma to investigate state corruption allegations and fraud in South Africa’s public sector.
The commission reported that the company bribed influential politicians and state officials to get government contracts during Zuma’s nine-year presidency from 2009 to 2018.
However, Zuma refuted all the claims of foul play at the time. Bosasa was also a donor to current South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s leadership campaign, and the company has allegedly received lucrative contracts.
With Bosasa’s corruption links, Ramaphosa said he would repay $35,000 (£27,300) in donations that Bosasa made to his campaign.
Ramaphosa faces many other accusations in addition to the Bosasa corruption charges.
Murray was also looking into a company linked to the Gupta brothers, Ajay, Rajesh, and Atul, who attempted “state capture” during Zuma’s leadership with the aid of political favors, according to the commission’s report.
The Gupta brothers moved from India to South Africa in 1993 and enjoyed favors from the government and public companies.
South Africa is striving to have the Gupta brothers deported from the UAE, where they were arrested and are currently facing trial.
The killing of Murray and his son has raised concerns about the safety of those investigating corruption allegations in the country.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his condolences to the Murray family and called for a thorough investigation into the matter.
The African National Congress (ANC) also condemned the killing and urged law enforcement agencies to leave no stone unturned in bringing the culprits to justice.
The killing has sent shockwaves across the country, with many people taking to social media to express their concerns about the state of corruption and violence in the country.
The incident has also highlighted the need for urgent measures that the government must take to protect those investigating corruption allegations in the country.
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