ACORNHOEK – A 38-year-old woman is fighting for her life in hospital, while her one-year-old baby girl has been declared dead after they were deliberately set alight by the baby’s father after a quarrel.
The incident happened on September 26 in Acornhoek around 20:00. According to the police, the couple had an argument earlier in the day and the boyfriend left the house.
Upon his return, he carried a five-litre container of petrol which he apparently threw at his girlfriend.
“He also threw a burning match at them. They were both seriously burnt. The baby died in hospital while the mother is in a critical condition,” said Brig Selvy Mohlala, the provincial spokesperson. The suspect is still at large.
This newspaper can firmly say that issues of domestic violence seem to be taking a toll in the province.
This incident happened only a few days after a pregnant woman shot and killed her husband with his traffic cop service pistol.
The two latest incidents also happened just days after the 2013/14 provincial crime stats were released, which shows that there had been 810 cases of murder reported, which show an increase of 16,4 per cent from the previous 696 cases reported in the year 2012/13.
