The arrest of a third suspect has deepened the case surrounding the Reiger Park shooting, in which two Anti-Gang Unit police officers and two young women were gunned down in Boksburg earlier this month.

Elvino Crawford, 27, appeared in the Boksburg Magistrates’ Court on Friday after being arrested at his home on 19 August, marking the latest development in an investigation that has already seen two other suspects charged with the killings.

Crawford joins 24-year-old Jamal Meyer and 23-year-old Regan Cheslyn Collins, who are already before the court.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Crawford faces four counts of murder, one count of attempted murder, two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, as well as a charge of being an accessory after the fact.

All three accused are expected back in the Boksburg Magistrates’ Court on 25 August for a formal bail application. The State has indicated that it will oppose bail.

The charges arise from the events of 7 August, when Constables Thapelo Tlomatsane and Sphiwe Sibeko, both members of the SAPS Anti-Gang Unit, were killed in Reiger Park.

The other victims were 27-year-old Jaydin Magerman and 31-year-old Roleen Lessing.

The two women had been travelling together when they were shot inside their vehicle after stopping near a local shop. Various media houses reported that the families believed the women may have been deliberately targeted, with a family representative describing the shooting as close-range.

The two police officers were subsequently killed after responding to reports of gunfire in the area.

The State alleges that the officers came under attack and were fatally shot. It further alleges that the accused attempted to murder another person during the incident and robbed the slain officers of their service rifles.

The circumstances surrounding the sequence of the shootings have been closely scrutinised since the incident.

It was reported that the officers were responding to gunshots when a man carrying a torch flagged down their passing police vehicle before they came under fire.

In the days after the killings, police launched a major multidisciplinary investigation involving the Hawks, SAPS Anti-Gang Unit, Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department and the Flying Squad.

A significant breakthrough came on 10 August when two R5 rifles belonging to Tlomatsane and Sibeko were recovered in the KwaDukathole informal settlement in Germiston.

It was reported that intelligence gathered during the investigation and information obtained from people questioned by police helped investigators locate the firearms. Police stressed that the rifles were the officers’ service weapons and were not the firearms used to kill the victims.

The investigation then moved rapidly.

Collins was the first suspect to be brought before court. He appeared in the Boksburg Magistrates’ Court facing four counts of murder, attempted murder, two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances and charges relating to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.

His arrest followed a tracing operation that led investigators to the KwaDukathole area.

Collins remains in custody, and his formal bail application has been set down for 25 August.

Meyer was arrested on 16 August in Reiger Park and appeared in court two days later.

He faces the same core charges as Collins.

His appearance produced another troubling development when his lawyer told the court that Meyer had allegedly been assaulted while in police custody. The court ordered that he be detained in the medical wing of Boksburg Prison.

Police have credited the Reiger Park community with assisting investigators.

The arrest of Meyer followed an intensive tracing operation involving the Hawks, EMPD, Anti-Gang Unit and Flying Squad, with authorities saying information from residents helped advance the investigation.

The latest arrest of Crawford followed further intelligence-led work by the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team based in Germiston.

According to the Hawks, investigators traced Crawford to Ekurhuleni before arresting him at his residence on 19 August.

The Hawks said one of the suspects is reportedly a relative of Crawford, although the precise nature of the alleged relationship and the role each accused allegedly played will have to be tested in court.

The killings have also renewed concerns about gangsterism and the risks faced by specialised police units operating in crime hotspots.

Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia visited Reiger Park after the killings and called on police to confront violent gangs within the law.

He also met the families of the slain officers and described the deaths as a devastating loss.

The two officers were young men with less than five years in the police service. Tlomatsane, 29, and Sibeko, 28, were subsequently laid to rest, with their colleagues and communities paying tribute to their service last weekend.

The deaths of Magerman and Lessing have also left the Reiger Park community mourning.

The two women were friends, despite some early reports incorrectly describing them as cousins. It was later corrected after speaking to the families.

With Crawford now added to the case, three accused are before the courts.

The investigation, however, remains active, and authorities have not ruled out further developments as detectives work to establish exactly what happened on the night of 7 August and the alleged roles of each suspect.

For now, the four deaths have transformed a single night of violence in Reiger Park into one of Gauteng’s most closely watched gang-related murder cases, with the next major test coming on 25 August when the three accused are expected to face formal bail proceedings.