Cops confirm arrest in Louise de Waal case

Cops confirm arrest in Louise de Waal case
2011-10-13 10:09

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Johannesburg - Gauteng police have confirmed that a man has been arrested in connection with the abduction of Roodepoort schoolgirl Louise de Waal.

According to eNews, the man handed himself over to police in KwaZulu-Natal, and confessed to the kidnapping.

Police were however unable to confirm that the burnt body found on a farm in Magaliesburg on Wednesday afternoon is De Waal's, despite media reports that her family had identified the body by a belly ring and earrings.

More to follow.


- News24


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2011-10-13 11:06

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Johannesburg - A suspected serial rapist has confessed to kidnapping and murdering Florida high school pupil Louise De Waal, Gauteng police said on Thursday.

"He handed himself in at the Margate police station [in KwaZulu-Natal], this morning," acting Gauteng police commissioner Major General Nobesuthu Masiya told reporters in Johannesburg.

She said Warrant Officer Peet du Toit, who headed up the investigation into the kidnapping of the 17-year-old De Waal, got hold of the man through his brother, and persuaded him to hand himself over.

The man was allegedly linked to nine cases of rape and one of murder, she said.

Sunday rapist

The crimes were attributed to a man nicknamed the "Sunday rapist".

"The KZN police are still interviewing the man. He has not yet confessed to the other rapes and the murder," she said.

Du Toit said the man's modus operandi matched the Sunday rapist's.

"The man usually goes out to prowl on Sunday between 10:00 and 13:00 in certain suburbs in Gauteng and the North West, and looks for girls between the ages of 10 and 17," he said.

"He then drives 20 or 30km away and rapes the girls. He often takes mementos from them like head-bands or panties."

Masiya said the man, in his 30s, had a previous conviction for sexual assault.

"He was arrested in 2007, convicted and sentenced to three years in prison. The sentence was suspended for three years. He spent time doing community service."

Masiya confirmed that a burnt body was found at a farm in Magaliesburg on Wednesday afternoon, but said police were awaiting forensic results before it could be identified.

De Waal was kidnapped at gunpoint while walking to school in White Ridge, Florida, west of Johannesburg, on Wednesday morning.


- SAPA

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