Pretoria – The South African Police Service (SAPS) in Limpopo has condemned the recent murder of four people, including a woman and a girl, whose killings sparked revenge attacks in which two men were subsequently killed.
Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said the 14-year-old girl was killed at Mookgopong in Naboomspruit on Thursday, while the 29-year-old woman was murdered at Mapayeni village outside Giyani on Friday.
In avenging the murder of the teenage girl and the 29-year-old woman, police said two men were killed in mob attacks after they suspected of being behind the murders.
“On Thursday night, 23 September 2021, the body of a 14-year-old girl, identified as Palesa Mosoloke, was found inside a shack at Extension 8 informal settlement.
’’The body did not have any visible injuries and it is suspected that the victim might have been strangled,” said Mojapelo.
Police are also investigating the possibility that the child might have been raped.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that the shack was rented by a foreign national only known as Mhlongo who has since disappeared,” said Mojapelo.
“The police were still busy with investigations when they received information about a Swaziland national that was found assaulted and stoned. His body had been set alight on Saturday, 25 September 2021 at about 00:45.”
The eSwatini national later succumbed to the injuries on arrival at the hospital.
“Preliminary investigation indicated that the deceased was suspected by community members of being involved in the rape and murder of the 14-year-old girl,” said Mojapelo.
In the other incident, the lifeless body of a 29-year-old woman was found by community members, lying on the street at Mapayeni village on Friday night.
“The police, who were on patrol duties were called and attended to the scene. Preliminary investigations revealed that the deceased, identified as Tiyiselani Precious Rikhotso, was hacked and stabbed to death by an unknown suspect while walking to the nearby store. The suspect then fled the scene,” said Mojapelo.
“The next day, on Saturday, 25 September 2021 at about 07h25 the community members from the same village reportedly suspected a certain man, hunted him down and found him in a certain house where they killed him.”
IOL