Godrich Gardee offers ‘handsome reward’ for information on his daughter Hillary’s murder

Mpumalanga lawyer and former EFF secretary-general Godrich Gardee has posted a message on social media offering a “handsome reward” to anybody who can give the police more information regarding the kidnapping and killing of his daughter Hillary Gardee. 

In the post, shared on Facebook and Twitter, Gardee calls on people in the Mbombela CBD who can “help police [with information] on how Hillary Gardee was kidnapped when she left SuperSpar” on Friday, 29 April. 

The move comes despite Police Minister Bheki Cele deploying the “best experts” to work on the case. 

Hillary Gardee was found murdered 45km outside Mbombela on Tuesday, 3 May.

Former EFF secretary-general Godrich Gardee. (Photo: Leila Dougan)

Throughout the days following the discovery of Hillary’s body, EFF leader Julius Malema iterated that they would deploy their own intelligence capacity to find the killers. 

Malema, who delivered Hillary’s eulogy at the Church on the Hill in Kamagugu, told Cele that they wanted the killers locked up for a very long time. 

“So that when we sit down and relax, we do so knowing that the killers of Hillary are rotting in jail. 

“That’s the only thing we are wishing for and, in the absence of that, Minister, you will have to defend us all the time because then we’ll start having ideas on what we can do to ‘complement justice’.” 

Gardee’s social media post asks people to assist with “any information on shops Hillary visited that day and what car she last went into when she left Spar”. 

“We assure you of highest secrecy and confidentiality,” the post reads. 

013NEWS has been reliably informed that members of the EFF’s paramilitary security arm and of the taxi industry have been engaged in a search operation in the eMalahleni CBD. 

They were deployed there on Tuesday after information was received that a fourth suspect in the murder case had been spotted in the area. 

Sources close to the operation told 013NEWS that the suspect handed himself over to the police in Witbank on Tuesday evening, but police spokesperson Donald Mdluli said he could not confirm this.  

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-05-10-fearless-and-independent-sa-courts-hailed-for-holding-the-line-against-zuma-onslaught/

Condolences 

Three men - Lawrence Mkhatshwa (39), Philemon Lukhele (45) and Albert Gama (52) - are in custody after being accused of committing the murder. They appeared briefly in the Mbombela Magistrates’ Court on Monday following their arrests over the weekend.  

The trio abandoned their bail application in court, opting to stay in prison while the police continue with their investigation, and will be back in court on 9 June. 

Lawyer Sifiso Silindza, speaking on behalf of accused number two, Philemon Lukhele, said: “My instruction specifically from accused number two: firstly, he wishes to convey his condolences to the Gardee family and that he is willing to abandon bail for the purposes of allowing the State to conduct its investigations and if need be for him to be of assistance to the court.  

“In the final moment of time, the effects of what really happened here will reveal themselves and, to that extent, he is willing to endure the pain of being in custody until he is clear.  

“He said he has known Mr Gardee for a long time and that he wishes him comfort.” 

Gardee said they also want information regarding other abductions and emptying of bank accounts. 

“PIe [sic] help me bring closure to myself and family…someone saw it all.…If your information is helpful to the police, our family will reward you handsomely… We need this information…,” said Gardee in his social media post. DM

 

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