A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
A convicted South African murderer who shot dead dozens of black men while working as a security guard in the apartheid era has said the police sanctioned his violence.
Louis van Schoor, described as the country’s most prolific murderer, said others should share the blame for the killings which saw him shoot dead people as young as 12.
He is said to have shot dead at least 39 people, all black or mixed race, in a three-year period in the 1980s while employed to guard white-owned businesses in the city of East London.
The 73-year-old former policeman, who was convicted of seven killings, has now told an investigation by the BBC that local police knew what he was doing and actively supported and encouraged him.
He said: “Every officer in East London knew what was going on… all the police officers knew.
“Not once did anybody say, ‘Hey Louis, you’re on the borderline or you should cool it or whatever’… they all knew what was happening.”
Van Schoor has always said he is not a serial killer and that he acted within the law.
He has maintained he only shot criminals caught red-handed breaking into buildings and is not racist and did not set out to shoot black people.
However, in interviews with the BBC, he appeared to acknowledge deriving a thrill from his work.
“Every night was a new adventure, if you want to put it that way,” he said, and described tracking black people in the dark as “exciting”.
Survivors have described being shot after they had surrendered and sometimes when they had their hands up.
Others alleged Van Schoor toyed with them, asking if they would prefer to be arrested or shot, before shooting them anyway.
One 14-year-old boy shot in July 1988 said he had been breaking into a restaurant when he saw the guard and hid in a toilet.
He alleged Van Schoor called him out, told him to stand next to the wall and then shot him repeatedly.
He said: “He told me to stand up, but I couldn’t. While I was lying there, he kicked me in the mouth. He picked me up and propped me up against a table and then he shot me again.”
Van Schoor said he had significant support from the white community in East London and he reported each killing to the police himself.
As the country began to change after the release of Nelson Mandela, and following pressure from activists and journalists, he was arrested in 1991.
Much of the apartheid apparatus remained in place at the time, however, and the case against him largely collapsed.
He was convicted of seven murders and served only 12 years in prison.
Discussion about this post