A sombre mood has engulfed the Letsoalo household, in Katlehong, following the brutal murder of two unsuspecting siblings and a seven-month-old baby, allegedly by their own family members, last Thursday.
Two young men, aged 19 and 21 years old, are reported to have stormed into the Letsoalo home, armed with knives and ready to kill their cousins, Lerato (19) and Nthabiseng Letsoalo (23), and the baby.
Following an alarming cry for help from one of the deceased, nearby members of the community managed to act swiftly and apprehended the suspects until the police arrived to arrest them.
The three bodies of the deceased were found in a bathtub filled with hot water.
Ekurhuleni Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) for community safety, Clr Vivian Chauke, as well as MMC for health and social development, Clr Makhosazana Mabaso, visited the bereaved family on Friday, in an effort to bring comfort, as well as to offer them assistance to ensure the children are buried with dignity.
Chauke expressed deep sadness and shock upon her arrival at the Letsoalo family home.
“This is merciless and very evil,” she said.
“As the municipality we are here to comfort the grieving family, as well as to reassure them that we will exhaust every avenue to see justice prevail in this case, so as to allow the family to find closure.”
An appalled Nkosiyazi Mbingo, an elder brother of the deceased and the family spokesman, said they had stab wounds all over their bodies.
“We have always treated these boys as our brothers, never did we ever suspect that one day they would turn against us and kill us,” said Mbingo.
Mabaso assured the family that the municipality will immediately deploy a social worker to provide trauma counselling services for the entire family.
The chaplain from the community safety department will also provide the family with psycho-social support, while the health department assists in fast-tracking the process of finalising the postmortem report.
The two suspects were taken to a local hospital under heavy police guard, following a beating by the members of the community.
Related articles:
Breaking News: Young women, baby assaulted, then drowned in boiling water
Murder accused badly assaulted by community
