Original subtitles

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Musa.

Hello.

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Tobias.

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[lady breathing heavily]

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[victim groaning]

Mama.

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Mama!

Mama.

[sobbing] Mama.

Mama.

Mama.

Mama.

Mama.

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[car horn honking]

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Hi.

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Who died?

Our dreams.

Our pride.

Can I get a Brandy and Coke please?

Hey.

[Micki] Oh, hello.

How are you?

Good. How are you?

Better than I was.

How's Mark?

No, he's good.

Well, he's busy, but aren't we all?

Well, no.

No, we're in a really good place, I think.

Good. I'm glad.

It's good Micki.

[Micki] Yeah. Have a smoke?

[Erika] Hmm.

Please.

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[Brigadier] You look like shit.

Oh yeah. Thank you.

Are you getting enough sleep?

Sleep?

Yeah, I've heard of that, I think.

Well I have some good news for you,

but it's nothing that's gonna guarantee you

bed rest in the foreseeable future.

Mm-hmm.

Your course has been approved.

You can start.

Really?

Funding for 20 officers to be trained by you

in profiling at the Academy in Paarl.

Course starts in three weeks.

Well, if you've changed your mind-

No, no, no, no, no.

Oh, Brigadier.

I've never seen anybody so happy

to be served a tonne of new work.

Anyway, since you're in the mood for more work,

there's a new shit storm.

My favourite kind.

Okay. I will get right on this.

Thank you.

[Erika] News.

I got the funding for my course.

Wow, Micki, that's great.

Well done.

Thank you.

I'm really hoping you'll get involved.

Alright, I'd like that.

And we've got a new case.

Need to travel.

I'm so done with travelling.

I honestly don't know how

you keep up with where you are.

Must make your head spin.

Car number plates.

So I know where I am.

Good system.

So, what's the case?

Yeah, well...

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[Pathologist] Sharon Jabavu, cause of death,

as you can see, a gunshot wound to the head.

Was a good shot. It's accurate.

Yeah. I read the dockets.

Five of the earlier victims were

shot above the left eyebrow.

Five people shot in the left side of the chest.

Two in the right. Exactly.

And he comes out of nowhere every time.

It's like trying to catch a fucking wisp of smoke.

No mutilation or other injuries?

No, not in the main but in this victim

there was evidence that she was raped.

Most likely postmortem.

I've sent samples to the lab for DNA analysis.

And the rapist, same person as the killer?

We don't know.

[Micki] Interesting.

Well, what could it mean?

I don't know.

But any change in an established pattern

is important to note.

If the killer did rape her,

it could mean he's taking more risks.

That could mean more mistakes.

It's possible. Yeah.

Let's hope so.

Because we have a town full of people

who are too petrified to go to sleep

because of this bastard.

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[Rob] Yep. This is Phoswa Village.

One of the shootings happened here.

Everybody's just terrified.

He's killed 16 people in under a year.

Yep. Injured Another 10.

You okay?

Ah it's just my kid.

Waiting for the wife to ring,

give me an update.

Little guy's not doing well.

Can we get the survivors in?

Anyone who was either shot by him or saw him shoot.

See if there's any kind of pattern.

Well, we have the witness statements.

Yeah, but I need to hear it for myself.

I need to get a proper sense of him.

Okay, I'll fix it up.

This is Rob, hey.

Can you round up the witnesses

for Dr. Pistorius to re-interview?

Yeah.

Yep, that's what I said.

Thanks. Cheers.

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[indistinct chatter]

This is one of our recent scenes

that happened a few weeks ago.

One of three shootings in one night.

You can go in, no one else lives here.

[Micki] The victim lived alone?

Yes. Oupa Luvuno.

He was shot in the chest sometime during the night.

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A witness saw the shooter eating porridge outside

after the shots were heard.

Took his life and took his dinner.

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[gun fires]

He was wearing a balaclava again.

Other witnesses confirmed it.

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Where next?

Uh, this way.

So he's stealing from his victims.

But those thefts feel opportunistic.

Kind of hit and run.

Killing is the focus.

What he takes is by the by.

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It's been months. We've made arrests.

Done ID parades but still been nowhere.

Kingsley Nyase was the night watchman here.

He was shot dead after a break in,

during the night, in the right side of the chest.

Two more few nights later in Phoswa Village,

Isaac Bekwa, shot on the left side of the chest.

Anonymous caller rang it in.

Rebecca Mbili.

Fezeka Ngalonde.

Bhekani Thomoyi.

Winston Rhabani.

Sorry. Sorry.

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[Micki groans]

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[conversation in foreign langue]

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[Rob sighs]

This is where Sharon Jabavu was killed.

She ran a shebeen out of her house.

That's Khanyiso, her daughter.

I tried talking to her before but...

Poor girl's very shy and she's very scared.

That's one of the survivors, Mlungisi Gwala.

I can talk to him while you're with Khanyiso.

I think a one-on-one with It'll be better, yeah?

Yeah.

Alright.

Mlungisi.

Come in the back.

[speaking in foreign language]

Hi Khanyiso.

I'm Micki.

I try and understand how and why people behave as they do.

And I'm gonna use what I know to try

and find out who shot your mother.

Will you talk to me?

See if you can help me do that.

Yes.

Okay, let's come through here.

He didn't walk, he marched.

[speaking in foreign language]

Confident, like, like he owned the place.

[speaking in foreign language]

Angry.

Very angry.

Hm.

[speaking in foreign language]

[speaking in foreign language]

He didn't speak.

He shot.

[speaking in foreign language]

Doesn't matter. [speaking in foreign language]

You're having nightmares?

Every night.

[speaking in foreign language]

And when I do...

[speaking in foreign language]

Nothing could touch Mlungisi.

Nothing.

Not anymore, eh?

No.

That Mlungisi is gone now. He's gone.

Are you going to catch the guy who did all this?

And this?

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[speaking in foreign language]

[speaking in foreign language]

For months now.

Do more than trying.

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I'm scared he's going to come back for me.

I know.

I want to catch him to make sure he can't come back

and he can't keep doing this.

We need to stop him.

Do you think you could do something to help me do that?

What?

Can you show me exactly what you saw?

Your auntie will be there.

It can help you remember.

Help you remember things that help us catch him.

I'll do it.

You are so brave.

I'm scared.

No, you can be both.

I'd say anyone who's brave without being scared is a liar.

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[indistinct chatter]

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Okay, so, we're calling him the Saloon Killer.

This isn't like any case I've worked before.

No, it's not like anyone we've seen either.

He's in and out fast.

Appears out of nowhere.

There doesn't seem to be any pattern.

Oh, my bloody nerves are shot.

I mean, I keep thinking about when

we're gonna get the next phone call.

How many more bodies are we gonna find

on the roadside before we catch this killer?

Well, killers reveal who they are

through the choices they make,

how they kill, what they do to the bodies,

the victims they choose.

But this case, ah, he's not giving anything away.

Now you know why we haven't

gotten anywhere in nine months.

This is where you've been running the investigation from?

[Rob] Yep.

Okay. That is not gonna work at all.

Sorry Rob.

I've got those dockets you were asking for.

Thanks man. Just put it on my desk.

Tell me about the arrests you've already made.

First one is Musa Zungu.

Multiple witnesses put him at the scene

of the shooting in the shebeen.

He's one of the first,

but while he was in custody,

that happened.

Another shooting.

Okay. So he can't be the shebeen shooter.

No, but he could be connected somehow.

Philani Ludonga.

Did you get anything from that one?

Couple of bits of things here and there,

but it didn't really lead anywhere.

Yeah, what was your working theory on the shooter?

The working theory?

Well, to be honest, we just kind of

chased the evidence as it came in.

You can tell.

Come on man. That's not fair.

Sorry but you said it yourself,

you're nowhere.

There's no thinking, no system.

Oh, listen to me.

We're not just a bunch of small town idiots.

We're underfunded. Nobody gives a shit.

And these shootings just keep coming.

The fuck do you want us to do?

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[shoes crunching on the sand]

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- [gun fires] - [lady screams]

[dial tone beeping]

[police siren wailing]

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[Rob] Shit. It's like a massacre.

Rob!

Rob. He's still alive.

Rob.

Hey, get a medic! Get a medic, quick!

- Go! - Pulse is fading a bit.

[victim groaning]

[Rob speaking in foreign language]

[victim groaning]

[Rob speaking in foreign language]

Did you see him?

[victim speaking indistinctly]

No.

Dammit!

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[police siren wailing]

[indistinct chatter]

He could be anywhere.

We need all the additional information we can get.

Agreed. I'm on it.

[phone ringing]

Don't tell me you've got another one.

I always call with the good news, right?

Oh, man.

How many?

Six women, one child in Empangeni.

Suspects?

[Erika] Right now, they just wanna know

if we think it's the same killer.

Sorry, Micki.

No.

No, it's fine.

You go.

Keep me posted and let me know

if you need any help.

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It's okay.

Your mother was shot.

She was on the ground.

She was...

dead.

What else could you see?

Was the room empty?

No.

Was there a man inside?

Yes.

Okay. Come sit here.

Then what happened, Khanyiso?

[Khanyiso] This other man came back in.

And did you recognise this other man?

I think so.

He came here to drink, sometimes.

[Khanyiso] Tall man told him

they'd someone else he wanted to kill.

I thought he meant me.

[Rob speaking in foreign language]

[Rob speaking in foreign language]

Did he shoot anyone?

No, he took me outside, told me to get away.

What did you do?

I stayed outside. I was scared.

There was a sound coming from inside.

I didn't know what it was.

They were in there with my mama.

I thought they might be burying her.

I wanted to see her.

He was grunting on top of her like a pig.

[Micki] Oh, my darling.

It is not your fault.

None of it.

Look at me sweetheart.

You did nothing wrong.

You understand that?

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[Rob] Well...

Seems Musa was telling the truth.

But he was the one who had sex with Sharon's body.

So not a serial killer, he's a necrophiliac.

Is there any connection between him and the shooter?

Not yet.

The shooter let him go and then

he hung around and he raped a dead woman.

How do you even function seeing this shit every day?

How do you?

[Rob] Hm.

I need to get back.

Start work on the profile.

Alright, if you need anything...

- Yep. - Give me a shout.

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[music playing on vehicle audio]

Oof. Such a tune, man.

Hm.

Look, when we get back, can you uh,

just get in the rest of the witnesses

and just organise a room for the interviews?

[Officer] Yeah.

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[phone line trilling]

[Mark] Hi.

Oh.

Hi.

[Mark] You're working late?

Oh, as usual.

I'm staring at the abyss.

Hoping the darkness will give me some kind of answer.

Okay.

Sorry. Is that too much?

No, no, no, no.

You, you, you can talk to me.

Have you not figured out the profile yet or...?

Can't seem to get a handle on this one.

It's like a shadow flitting between trees.

[Mark] Like a shadow?

Mm.

Always moving, nothing to catch hold of.

How are you gonna move it forward?

Same as usual. Get under his skin.

Just...

Just this time just feels harder.

[Mark] Maybe that's your mind telling you

to stop thinking like a serial killer.

Hmm, well unfortunately, that is literally my job.

Well, I wish I could be more useful,

but my skills don't exactly extend to this, so.

Well, that's a good thing.

No, I'll figure it out.

I always seem to.

See you in Cape Town.

Night, Mark.

[Mark] Night.

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So you don't know this guy, eh?

Never met him before?

Hm?

That's what you reckon.

It's just a coincidence.

[Detective] Oh, what, so you just go around

raping a lot of dead women then, eh?

No.

[speaking in foreign language]

You know it's funny that you say

you don't know the man who shot everyone.

For some reason he spared you?

And then he let you have a go at her instead.

Look here, Detective.

[speaking in foreign language].

Well, the evidence says different.

The evidence says you raped Sharon Jabavu.

So why did he let you live?

How would I know?

Listen, man, we know you know her.

You're going to trial for rape

and you're going to be convicted.

So the best shot you got is to tell us

who the fucking shooter is.

And then maybe they're gonna take it easy on you.

Okay?

[Musa laughing]

[speaking in foreign language]

[speaking in foreign language]

[Detective] Her daughter says you let her go.

[speaking in foreign language]

What, you didn't wanna rape her mother in front of her?

You've got some sort of ethics now.

But I didn't want him to kill her.

Right.

You saved her life.

You did one good thing. Now do another.

Ah Detective [speaking in foreign language].

I don't know that guy and I've never met him.

[speaking in foreign language]

Most of the victims [yawning],

were shot above the left or the right eye.

But some of them suffered chest wounds.

Thanks.

I see.

Jeez, man, are you alright?

Is your kid keeping you up?

Yep.

The kid. This case. It's rough.

Yeah, I get it, man.

Listen man, I think this guy's a pretty good shot.

I mean, some of these victims he was really close to,

but some are pretty far away, man.

I think he must be sniping.

Oh, Micki thinks he's had military training.

[Detective] I've got witness statements

that put in Army clothing.

Balaclava, blue.

[Rob] There's some informer interviews.

[Detective] Oh.

Anything good?

Oh, a couple of brothers,

said they've got a load of guns in their shack.

I can't see this guy keeping his gun at home.

It's like an extension of himself.

He's gonna keep it somewhere safe.

It's precious.

Micki, these okes live in Phoswa Village, okay.

Near the tavern and near the shebeen.

I mean, we've got a photograph.

It's of their shack.

It's a pretty rough area.

I mean, it'd be a great place to hide out.

Yeah, but where he stole its practical items

and batteries, tin food.

The kind of thing you'd need to survive off grid.

I'm sure he's got somewhere out of town.

Somewhere in the forest.

Can we get a team on it, please?

Sure, yeah, we'll uh, we'll uh,

we'll take a look but uh,

keep your eyes on the brothers, okay?

I'm on it.

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Okay, so...

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Okay, um...

Well, I think our killer has been trained as a sniper.

Yeah, he's rejected by his parents when young,

causing distrust.

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Suffers from a paranoid personality disorder.

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When he was young, he had hiding places in the forest.

Somewhere where he could be the hero of his own dreams.

[tense dramatic music]

And then the army is the perfect setting for his fantasy.

Yeah, but no, um, but he's discharged

and develops a grudge

and civilians become the enemy force.

[tense dramatic music]

Yeah, so the only way he can restore

his power is by killing.

[tense dramatic music]

This is a man who wants and needs to command respect.

When he doesn't get it

or when something triggers his anger,

that's when he goes out looking for victims.

Maybe there's been a problem at work

or maybe he's been disrespected by a girl

and he's likely to be impotent,

the rifle is a substitution for his penis.

A phallic extension, which could cause conflict.

- Hey. Wait, wait, wait. - [Micki] Anger.

Yeah?

How does this help us?

It will.

We need to understand how he thinks.

So far, your investigation has been

all over the fucking shop.

There is no clear victimology.

He's killed both men and women.

Some he's shot at a distance.

Oh and note the common factor is

his use of a saloon .22 rifle.

Some he's stolen from,

some he's killed at home, some in the streets.

This all fits with his attacks being anger motivated.

Something happens, he reacts.

He lives somewhere in Phoswa Village.

He's killing on home ground.

Again, he's reacting to anger.

He's not travelling long distances

to find his victims.

I mean this,

I mean this sounds totally random.

I mean, how are we supposed to build a case with this?

Well, it's not entirely random.

He's killing black adult civilians

who he sees as the enemy

and who represent the parents who rejected him.

[Detective] We are already looking in Phoswa.

What more can we do?

I think the forest is an

important place for him in some way.

I'm not sure how.

Maybe he keeps his weapon buried there

or maybe he has some sort of hideout in the trees.

But I think it's where he feels safe.

You say we go around and ask

people where do they feel safe?

We need something concrete we can act on.

He's a good shot.

Trained, most likely.

That's great, I mean, that's something

we can work with, right?

Thank you.

The balaclava, the uniforms he wears.

He's either in the army now or has been.

Defence force, SWAPO, uMkhonto we Sizwe even.

We should be looking at all members

and former members living in the area.

Especially anyone who's been discharged.

And search the forest, please.

Alright. You've heard the doctor.

Let's get to it.

[Micki] I'll be praying you find him while I'm gone.

Well, I'll do my best.

Hope your course goes well, Micki.

Thank you.

[Rob] Cheers, Micki.

Yeah, cheers.

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