Five dead in weekend mob justice attacks, police warn against vigilantism

The Eastern Cape and Limpopo provincial commissioners of police have condemned numerous weekend incidents of alleged mod justice, which resulted in five deaths in the provinces.

The Eastern Cape Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene, said she was distraught to learn about the brutal killing of four people in Bityi.

The police said two people, aged 30 and 40, were allegedly strangled to death in separate incidents at Qolweni location outside Mthatha.

Two men chased, found dead in mob justice incident

In the first incident, a resident went to her house in the morning when she noticed two men jumping out the window and fleeing.

“She found the door slightly open, and on entering the house, she saw the body of her neighbour lying on the floor. She alerted the community, who allegedly chased after the two men,” said Eastern Cape police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa.

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The two men who were seen running away were later found dead in the grazing land at the Lukhwethu location in Bityi with multiple injuries.

In another incident, a 40-year-old man was found dead inside a house with multiple injuries in the upper body and an electric cable around his neck.

The Eastern Cape police have opened three murder cases, and one of them had two counts of murder.

Communities urged to report crime

Mene condemned mob justice and discouraged the public from taking the law into their own hands.

“We encouraged the members of the community to report any criminal activity to the authorities or utilise community-based structures like Community Police Forum (CPF), which seek to bridge the gap between the community and the police,” she said.

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Limpopo Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe condemned the incident where a 29-year-old victim was attacked by community members.

The police in Hlogotlou have launched a search for suspects involved in the murder of the victim at Ngwaritsi village on Saturday.

According to the Limpopo police, upon arrival at a mob attack incident, they found the victim being attacked by the community, assaulted with various objects, and accused of stealing cables.

Alleged mob justice victim died from injuries

“It is alleged that the mob earlier took him to his residence to cut cable before attacking him. The victim was rescued by the police and was taken to the nearest hospital for medical attention,” Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said.

The victim, Thapelo Lekala, however, died from his injuries at the hospital.

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The police in Limpopo opened a murder case. Hadebe urged the community to work with the police and report any criminal activities to the police for investigation.