The Citizen reports that the Hawks (Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation) have launched a manhunt for suspects involved in the murder of one of their senior detectives.

Lieutenant-Colonel Frans Mathipa was the lead investigator in the abduction of alleged Isis leader Abdella Abadiga from the Mall of Africa in December – allegedly by SA military special forces. Mathipa was killed on Sunday night in a suspected hit. Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Thandi Mbambo said Mathipa of the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation Unit in Gauteng was on duty conducting an investigation when he was shot and killed while driving on the N1 highway near the Hammanskraal toll plaza. “He sustained gunshot wounds to the head and lost control of the vehicle which rolled and landed on the ditch. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A case of murder has been opened at Hammanskraal police station which will be investigated by the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team,” Mbambo indicated.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Faizel Patel at The Citizen
• Read too, Hawks officer shot dead during probe into kidnapping of alleged IS leader, at BusinessLive

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