News24.com | 'Will we get justice for my husband?': Family puts up R100k reward after police updates on killing dry up

Police appear to have made no progress in the murder of Juandré Kidson.

• Juandré Kidson was gunned down in front of his wife and child on the N4 in North West in May last year.
• His wife Johanette said she was devastated that no arrests had been made. 
• The family has offered a R100 000 reward for the arrests of the suspects. 

A North West family says police and the justice system have failed them as no one has been arrested for the brutal killing of their loved one, Juandré Kidson, almost a year ago.

Kidson was gunned down in front of his then one-year-old daughter and wife Johanette in May 2022.

The family was driving on the N4 highway in North West at the time.

Kidson's relatives have put up a R100 000 reward and are considering hiring a private investigator. They claim police have gone silent on the investigation.

Speaking to News24, an emotional Johanette said the last update they received from police was in September last year. 

READ | Mihalik murder: Alleged triggerman finally tells court his version

"It's been a mission trying to get any feedback from police on the update of my husband's murder. Surely his life can't mean that little to the police. There are people out there who murdered him in front of my child and me, and yet no one has been arrested. It's almost a year now that he is dead, and still we have no closure on the case," Johanette added.

The distraught widow said police needed to make the arrests to serve as a warning for would-be criminals.

She said:

She asked how many more people must fall victim to crime on that road before "serious action" was taken to curb the criminality taking place every day. 

North West transport department spokesperson Oshebeng Koonyaditse said the area was being patrolled.

"As far as we know, the spiking of vehicles has subsided, and we have not had any incident in a while now," Koonyaditse said.

"Spiking" is when vehicles are brought to a halt by car tyres that are punctured by spikes or other objects placed in the road. 

Kidson's brother Marco disputed that the police were patrolling the area, saying he had been made aware that criminals continued to target motorists on the N4.

Marco added:

Police spokesperson Colonel Adéle Myburgh said the investigation into Kidson's murder was ongoing.

She said detectives were investigating whether a 23-year-old suspect arrested last week could be linked to Kidson's murder.

According to a police statement, the suspect was arrested last week for armed robbery, attempted murder, possession of an unlicensed firearm, ammunition and possession of suspected stolen property.

How safe is your neighbourhood? Find out by using News24's CrimeCheck

Police said the suspect and an accomplice fled into the nearby bushes when officers went searching for them after receiving a complaint by a motorist who was robbed on the N4 near Brits Toll Plaza. 

"The suspects are believed to be part of the gang that has been placing spikes on the N4 road to cause punctures, thus compelling motorists to stop. They would then rob unsuspecting motorists," said police Lieutenant Colonel Amanda Funani. 

Johanette said the family was struggling to piece together their lives.

"There was absolutely no reason for him to be killed in such a manner. Was taking my husband's life really worth a few material items? Did my daughter have to lose her dad so early in her young life? Those murderers took away a part of our lives. My husband will never come back, he'll never be a part of our daughter's future milestones, and that is a pain I don't think I'll ever get over," she said. 

"I don't know if we'll ever get justice for my husband's death. Right now, it seems like he's just another statistic to fall victim to crime on the N4 road. But I still have a little hope that one day the call will come to say someone has been arrested and charged for his murder."