Kimberley - A Northern Cape man allegedly stabbed his cousin to death in “self-defence”, family members said.
Police arrested a 36-year-old suspect in Campbell on Saturday and he now faces a charge of murder following the death of 27-year-old Lukas Rooibaadjie.
“It is alleged that the victim was hired to clean the yard at the suspect’s home when an argument erupted,” police spokesman, Colonel Mohale Ramatseba, said.
“The argument was triggered when the victim removed a stone which was under a tree while busy cleaning.
“It is alleged the suspect did not want the stone to be removed as he was using it as a chair. The victim was stabbed with a knife in the chest and later died.”
Relatives gathered at the home of Rooibaadjie’s aunt, Rachel Gebooi, on Sunday and were still coming to terms with what had happened.
Gebooi said that she had raised her late nephew as her own child after her sister’s death and said that while the cousins often became involved in arguments which turned physical, she struggled to believe that the accused had any intention of killing the victim.
“My sister said that they must help to clean the yard,” Gebooi said on Sunday. “I had planned on going to Douglas to get school clothes but decided to stay behind at home. The next thing I knew, one of the children came to me and told me to come quickly because Ouma Martha (the mother of the accused) said there was trouble.”
Gebooi was convinced that there was some instigation on the part of the deceased, saying that there had been incidents where he had been the aggressor.
“Rooibaadjie grew up with a violent nature and we often had to break up fights that he was involved in.
“His brother and he had previously assaulted the accused and there was quite a bit of friction between them.
“I did not support his behaviour but I had to look after my sister’s child because he was family.”
According to Gebooi she does not believe that the accused meant to kill his cousin.
“I believe he was just defending himself because he only stabbed Lukas once. It was also not a very big knife so I truly believe he was just defending himself.”
The suspect is expected to appear in the Douglas Magistrate’s Court ton Monday. Police investigations are continuing.
In another incident, the Victoria West police have arrested a 38-year-old man in connection with the fatal stabbing of a 39-year-old man.
The incident happened at about 6.30pm on Saturday evening when the two were involved in an argument.
According to Ramatseba, the victim was rushed to a local hospital but died on the way.
“The motive has not yet been established. The victim has been identified as Salmon Voorman of Victoria West. The suspect is expected to appear in court soon.”
Diamond Fields Advertiser
* Use IOL’s Facebook and Twitter pages to comment on our stories. See links below.