For six years, the murder of Colonel Lebyane Jeffrey Seroka – the former Station Commander of Groblersdal Police Station – has haunted Limpopo SAPS like an open wound. Gunned down outside his own home, his car stolen, his killers vanished into the night.
This weekend, that wound finally began to close.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) confirmed it has arrested three suspects in connection with the 2020 assassination of the respected policeman, marking the first major breakthrough in a case many feared would go cold forever.
“The Hawks have arrested three suspects in connection with the murder of Colonel Lebyane Jeffrey Seroka, the former Station Commander of Groblersdal Police Station, who was fatally shot six years ago. The arrests mark a significant breakthrough in the long-running investigation, with further arrests imminent,” the Hawks said in a statement.
The suspects – two women aged 51 and 41, and a 56-year-old man – were arrested on Friday night, 9 October 2026, in the Nkoana area of the Sekhukhune District, Limpopo.
They are expected to appear before the Moutse Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 12 October 2026, facing a heavy charge sheet: conspiracy to commit murder, murder, vehicle hijacking, robbery with aggravating circumstances, possession of an unlicensed firearm and possession of ammunition.
Colonel Seroka was not just another officer. In a province where policing is often under-resourced and dangerous, he was the man in charge – the commander who was supposed to be protected by the system he served.
Instead, he was fatally shot by unknown assailants outside his residence in Maganagobuswa Village, within the Dennilton policing area. After killing him, the perpetrators allegedly fled with his motor vehicle, which was later recovered abandoned along the Dennilton to Maklerekeng road.
That detail – stealing the commander’s car after executing him – told the whole story. It was not just murder. It was humiliation. It was a message to SAPS: no one is untouchable.
For six years, his family has waited. His former colleagues at Groblersdal have saluted an empty chair.
If Colonel Seroka could turn in his grave, he would finally stop turning today.
The breakthrough, according to the Hawks, follows sustained investigative work by the Serious Organised Crime Investigation teams in Polokwane and at Head Office. While other cases gathered dust, investigators kept pulling the thread.
“Despite the passage of six years, investigators continued to pursue leads to establish the circumstances surrounding the killing and identify those allegedly responsible,” the Hawks said.
“The investigation remains ongoing, with the team following additional leads and working to establish the respective roles of those implicated in the crime. Further arrests are anticipated as investigative efforts continue.”
The Provincial Head of the Hawks in Limpopo, Major General (Adv) Gopz Govender, was blunt about what this arrest means for SAPS morale and for justice.
“Six years may have passed, but justice has no expiry date. Colonel Seroka dedicated his life to serving this country and his killing will not be forgotten. Our investigation continues, and we will follow every credible lead to ensure that those implicated are brought before the courts to answer to the allegations against them,” Govender said.
His words cut to the heart of a crisis inside SAPS – the killing of its own.
From 2020 to date, dozens of police officers have been murdered on and off duty in Limpopo, Gauteng and KZN, many in what appear to be targeted hits linked to taxi violence, organised crime and internal vendettas. Too few cases reach court.
Seroka’s case became symbolic of that impunity. A Station Commander killed at his gate, his car hijacked, and for six years – nothing.
Until now.
The Hawks are now appealing to anyone with information to come forward, confident that the three arrested this weekend were not acting alone.
