Pretoria – A 29-year-old woman was on Thursday scheduled to appear in the Vereeniging Magistrate’s Court after being charged with the murder of a 6-year-old boy and an 8-year-old girl, the South African Police Service (SAPS) in Gauteng said.
SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters said the bodies of the children were discovered metres apart in the early hours of September 19, a few hours after the children had been reported missing at the Orange Farm police station.
“The investigation on Friday, 25 September 2020, led police to Soweto where the woman was found and arrested on suspicion of being involved in the murder of the boy and the girl. The suspect's initial court appearance was, on Monday, 28 September 2020, postponed to today (Thursday) after she had to be rushed to hospital for medical attention,” said Peters.
“Police can at this point confirm that this is the same suspect who was arrested in April 2020 for the murder of another child, a 7-year-old boy who was her neighbour, after the child's body was found in her house. The boy had been reported missing earlier in the day on 15 April 2020, and the search led to the woman's house, where the child's body was found.”
The woman and her partner were both arrested at the time but charges were withdrawn against the male suspect.
“The murder case of April 2020 has been temporarily withdrawn in court pending the outcome of the toxicology report. The 29-year-old woman was released from custody on 16 September 2020, three days before the murder of the two children,” said Peters.
“The investigation is still under way while police continue to work hard to build a solid case in support of the preliminary evidence gathered thus far. Police remain committed to prioritising the investigation of crimes committed against children, women and other vulnerable persons.”
Peters added that the woman was previously arrested for being in South Africa illegally.
African News Agency (ANA)