Dad held after boy, three, found dead in bucket

The Newclare community in Johannesburg is in shock after a man was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly murdering his three-year-old son after having a fight with the mother of the child.

Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Kay Makhubela yesterday confirmed that the man was arrested and was expected to appear in a Johannesburg court.

Community members who asked not to be identified for fear of victimisation alleged the father was drunk on Tuesday night and had an argument with his wife. The argument resulted in him shutting her out of the house.

It was believed the fight had been fuelled by the mother’s refusal to lend her husband more money for alcohol.

They claimed that on Wednesday, the mother went to look for the child and for hours believed he was missing.

She eventually decided to report the matter to the Sophiatown police.

Community members said the father acted as if the child was missing, until the police came to his home, where they allegedly found the corpse of the child in a bucket under the bed.

According to ER24 spokesperson Ineke van Huyssteen, paramedics arrived at the scene at approximately 1pm to find the police already in attendance.

“They were led to a room where they discovered the body of the boy in a bucket under the bed.

“Unfortunately, the boy had sustained fatal injuries and was declared dead at the scene by paramedics,” Van Huyssteen said. “The exact circumstances surrounding the incident were not known to our paramedics.”

Community members claimed the man had anger issues and was especially agitated on Tuesday by the looting of foreigner-owned shops in Newclare.

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