Durban - Police are hunting suspects who robbed and killed a 24-year-old man, seemingly for his jacket and takkies, in Pietermaritzburg a week ago.
Michael “Jody” Thomas was accosted in Copesville and stabbed in the neck by three men, who robbed him of his Converse takkies and leather jacket as he lay dying and bleeding on the ground.
Police spokesman, Colonel Jay Naicker, confirmed police were investigating and arrests were imminent.
Thomas’s family, friends and neighbours have called for more visible policing in Copesville.
Residents say they are living like prisoners in their homes, because they are afraid of the criminals who have taken over the neighbourhood.
“We live in constant fear. This poor young man’s life was snuffed out in an instant, for a pair of takkies and a jacket,” said Thomas’s neighbour, Dan Naidoo.
According to Thomas’s aunt, Anitha Rajaram, he had walked to Raisethorpe with a friend to run an errand.
On their way back home, they decided to take a short cut along a path near the informal settlement that borders Copesville.
This decision cost Thomas his life.
Thomas and his friend were attacked by the suspects, who were hiding in bushes. Thomas was stabbed in the neck and thigh. His friend managed to run away and screamed for help, but it was too late for Thomas, who died at the scene.
The killers fled into the informal settlement.
“The family is devastated. Thomas was such a humble, jovial, loving young man. This is a tragic loss. We cannot understand why the attackers had to kill Thomas over a jacket and a pair of shoes,” Rajaram said.
Daily News