A hitman belonging to the Firm Gang under the command of alleged 28s gang boss, Ralph Stanfield, has been busted for the murder of slain City of Cape Town staffer, Wendy Kloppers.
This was revealed at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday as Warren-Lee Dennis appeared alongside other skollies linked to the arrest of Stanfield and his wife Nicole Johnson.
The notorious duo were busted last year alongside Johannes “Bal” Abrahams, Denver Booysen and Jose Brand and appeared at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on various charges linked to the alleged manhunt of a former employee of Ralph after he allegedly stole over R1 million from the couple.
Last week, cops hauled three alleged hitmen - namely Jonathan Cloete, Abraham Wilson and Shakeel Pelston - also of the Firm gang before the same court for the murder of slain 27s gang boss, William ‘Red’ Stevens, and the attempted hit on the son of Jerome ‘Donkie’ Booysen.
Their case was postponed on Tuesday. But as they returned, it was revealed that Dennis and Imtiyaaz Sedick had been added to the charge sheet.
State prosecutor, Advocate Frank van Heerden, told the court that Dennis and Sedick were added to three charges on the charge sheet, which includes murder, attempted murder and the possession of firearms and ammunition.
He further explained that Dennis was facing a murder charge for the shooting of Kloppers.
The 48-year-old who worked for the City’s environmental affairs department was visiting the Delft Symphony Way housing project site to conduct an inspection when she was gunned down in February last year.
The case was postponed until Thursday where all five men will now join Stanfield and his wife in the dock as state prosecutors have warned of more arrests.
Speaking outside court provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile, lauded the efforts of the investigating team saying cops were closing the net on extortion rackets.
Patekile says: “We are closing the gap on criminal groupings, whether it is Ralph Stanfield or any other groupings.
“We said we wanted to look at the bigger picture and that is what we are doing. The investigation [into the murder of Kloppers] has been tedious but persistent. That pays dividends to this.”
The murder of Kloppers sparked an intense investigation by the City into the construction mafia and extortion rackets affecting housing developments.
In a bold move, City manager Lungelo Mbadanzayo suspended all tenders and launched a mammoth investigation into companies and officials linked to the murky underworld resulting in the suspension of officials and the blacklisting of companies.
This included 12 construction companies linked to and owned by Johnson and Stanfield.
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has welcomed the arrest saying it is a step forward for justice for the family of Kloppers.
The mayor says: “We hope this arrest is the first step towards full justice for Wendy’s family and colleagues, and for the many unseen beneficiaries of the Delft Symphony Way housing project impacted by violent disruptions at the time of the brazen murder on-site.
“The City’s R1 million reward still stands for information leading to the prosecution of those behind the murder of Ms Kloppers.
“Certainly, this single suspect never acted alone. We are closely following developments and call on the public to come forward with information to assist the prosecution.”