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Image source, Getty Images
A South African accountant who was investigating high-level corruption cases has been shot dead along with his son.
Cloete Murray, 50, was the liquidator for Bosasa, a company implicated in numerous government contract scandals.
He also worked as a liquidator for firms linked to the wealthy Gupta brothers, who deny bribery accusations.
Police will see if there is a link between Mr Murray’s murder and these corruption investigations.
Mr Murray was shot by unknown gunmen while driving in Johannesburg with his 28-year-old son Thomas, a legal adviser, on Saturday.
His son died at the scene while Mr Murray was taken to hospital and later died of his injuries, local media reported, citing a police spokesperson.
The pair were driving their white Toyota Prado towards their home in Pretoria, South African media reported.
Mr Murray’s job as a court-appointed company liquidator was to look into the accounts of firms that had folded, recover assets, and report any criminality.
One of those companies was Bosasa, a government contractor specialising in prison services.
The landmark Zondo commission into corruption concluded the company extensively bribed politicians and government officials to get government contracts during the nine-year presidency of Jacob Zuma, from 2009 to 2018.
Mr Zuma refused to co-operate with the inquiry but has denied accusations of corruption.
In 2018, current South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he would repay a $35,000 (£27,300) donation from Bosasa.
Bosasa went into voluntary liquidation after banks closed its accounts.
Mr Murray was also working as a liquidator for firms linked to the Gupta brothers. The Zondo commission found that the brothers – Ajay, Rajesh and Atul – tried to influence political and economic decisions during Mr Zuma’s presidency in a process known as “state capture”.
The Guptas moved from India to South Africa in 1993 and owned a wide-ranging portfolio of companies that enjoyed lucrative contracts with South African government departments and state-owned companies.
They have denied accusations of paying financial bribes to win contracts.
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