Police Raid Fugitive Thabo Bester's Last Known Residence
The police have conducted a raid at the last known residence of Thabo Bester, the escaped rapist and murderer who fled from Mangaung Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein last year, reports eNCA. Bester escaped from the correctional facility in May 2022 after staging his death in a fire in his cell. He had been serving life in prison after also being convicted of murder. The Correctional Services Department has taken over operations at the prison. The raid comes weeks after the convict fled, and after the home was painted and cleaned. The police have not provided any further information after the search.
Power Utility Eskom Predicts Load Shedding Every Week for the Next Year
Eskom has forecasted load shedding every week for the next year, assuming a worst-case scenario of outages (both planned and unplanned) exceeding 17,000MW, reports News24. The power utility implements scheduled rolling blackouts when demand for power outstrips supply. Energy analyst Chris Yelland said that Eskom forecasts demand and unplanned and planned outages, and publishes it in a table, indicating whether there will be a shortage of supply. Yelland says the latest table shows there will be load shedding "every single week of the year." He said it was important to note that Eskom's forecast does not specify on which days the load shedding will be implemented or what stages of load shedding there will be. It is also not definite that there will be load shedding - because the forecast is based on assumptions.
South African Kidnapped in Libya 6 Years Ago Still Alive, Sold to Al-Qaeda in Mali
South African paramedic Gerco van Deventer, who was abducted in Libya in November 2017, is still alive, reports News24. Olivier Dubois, a French journalist who was released from captivity in Mali on March 14, 2023, said he had been living with Van Deventer for nearly two years. Following Dubois' release, a new video of Van Deventer surfaced, in which he said that he was shot in the arm and also lamented not knowing anything about his family. There are now renewed talks, with many organisations working to get him back home safely.
