SCENES of chaos rolled out at Mlungisi Police Station on Tuesday at midday over the death of a three-year-old boy, Olovuyo Moni, whose body was found in the early hours of Monday morning.
The lifeless body was found near the Nkwanca Informal Settlements by a passerby, who reported the gruesome discovery to the local police station.
Komani SAPS spokesperson, Captain Namdla Mdleleni, confirmed the incident on Monday evening and said, at the time, no arrests had been made.
“It is alleged that the body of the boy with head injuries was found in an open veld at about 07:00 near Nkwanca Squatter Camp. Police are investigating a case of murder,” said Mdleleni.
She further dismissed the rumour of rape that was currently doing the rounds.
Members of the family were too distraught to talk about the incident.
Captain Mdleleni said that, according to the family, the boy was last seen alive on Sunday afternoon, going to a local spaza shop to buy sweets for himself and he never came back.
The death of the minor sent shock waves through the community and residents began hunting down the suspect.
On Tuesday a large number of locals targeted a man who they said had confessed to committing the crime, but the suspect evaded the mob and turned himself in to the Mlungisi Police Station.
But Captain Mdleleni cleared the man’s name saying he had only gone to the police station to seek refuge as his life was under threat.
“The man ran to the police station because he feared for his life and needed police protection. He isn’t a suspect in the case and upon questioning at the station, nothing linked him to the case and people must please refrain from taking the law into their own hands,” she said.
The disgruntled group demanded that the man be handed over to them, while they rattled the gates of the police station with some throwing stones.
The steel gate had to be locked with the suspect inside.
Police had to use excessive force in the form of rubber bullets to disperse the mob, who had begun burning tyres and barricading roads with rubbish.
Community activist, Dalubuhle Gegana, said residents were disgruntled because police had dragged their feet in attending to the matter.
“We do not have confidence in the local police because when the matter was reported to them on Sunday, they said they’d wait for 48 hours before they could act.
“The following day, the baby was found dead. Had they acted when they received the news the boy’s life would have been spared.”
Mdleleni could not be reached to comment on the accusations levelled against the police officers who were on duty on Sunday and to explain the said 48-hour waiting period before police can act on a missing person report.
