Police have not yet arrested any of the criminals who raped and killed a grandmother and sexually assaulted her granddaughter in Soweto, but said that maximum resources were being mobilised to widen the search.
On Friday, the rapists allegedly gained access to their house in Dobsonville. They attacked the 21-year-old and sexually assaulted her at gunpoint.
Her 61-year-old grandmother was also raped in another room. The elderly woman died from her injuries.
The acting Gauteng provincial commissioner of police, Major-General Johan Ndlovu, appealed to investigators to act with speed and use maximum resources to find these rapists.
Ndlovu also called for the case to be prioritised as police continued to search for those involved.
Recent debates around gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa have raised concerns that the country has the right legislation, but no follow-through when it comes to enforcement.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has been vocal on the crisis, saying that some men felt like they owned women and could do as they pleased.
There have also been several demonstrations held in recent months with protesters calling for harsher punishment for those found guilty of GBV.
GENDER COMMISSION CALLS FOR ACTION
Meanwhile, the Commission for Gender Equality called on the police to ensure those behind the rape and murder of a Soweto grandmother and sexual assault of her granddaughter to be arrested soon.
“They shouldn’t be given a lenient sentence and they should be taught a lesson. This should send a lesson to perpetrators of gender-based violence in the country,” said commission spokesperson Javu Baloyi.