Three people have been arrested following the mysterious death of 21 young people in late June at a casual bar in East London, in southeastern South Africa, police said Wednesday.

The owner of the clandestine bar was more tolerable, aged 52 years, and his employees than 33 and 34 years old, on this occasion in detention for avoir servi des boissons alcoolisées dans des illégales, requested a communiqué from the police sans les To identify.

The owner is expected to appear in court on August 19 for selling alcohol to minors. Two of his employees have already been fined 2,000 rand (120 euros) and will only go to court if they cannot pay it, police said.

A “charged smell”

The 21 young people, aged between 14 and 20, had died under mysterious circumstances at the Enyobeni bar in the borough of Scenery Park, east London. Most of the bodies had been found in the bar with no apparent injuries, some died in the following hours in hospital.

Authorities had ruled out the possibility of a fatal stampede, and two weeks after the tragedy, autopsies and scans failed to determine the cause of death. Survivors mentioned a “suffocating smell” and testimonies suggested intoxication or poisoning.

“As we have said from the beginning, the investigation is ongoing and must be carried out with the utmost caution and wisdom if we are to reach the desired conclusions,” said Eastern Cape Provincial Police Chief Nomthetheleli Mene.