Double murder: Mob kills suspected axe murderer of 11-year-old girl

Angry residents of Stilte Park, in Meloding, took the law into their hands when they hunted down and killed the alleged murderer of an 11-year-old girl on Saturday, 16 March.

The girl, Nthabiseng Motsoaosile, allegedly suffered a fatal blow to the head with an axe at about 4pm in the afternoon.

On arrival at the scene, officers from the Modiseng Police Station found Nthabiseng’s body lying in a pool of blood and covered with a blanket. The girl was certified dead by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel.

Modiseng mob justice

According to Free State police spokesperson Captain Stephen Thakeng, there were a number of community members present and the father of the deceased confirmed the victim was his daughter.

“Members of the community apparently followed the suspect to where he was hiding, and murdered him. He was also certified dead at the crime scene.”

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Case of double murder

Thakeng said police are investigating a case of double murder.

The police issued a stern warning to community members to not take the law into their hands, but hand over people believed to be suspects to the nearest police station in order for a thorough investigation to be conducted.

Call for information

The police are looking for the individuals who murdered the suspected axe murderer. Anyone with information can call the Crime Stop number 08600-10111 or use the MySAPS App anonymously.

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Murder stats: Mob justice in SA

Mob justice reared its ugly head in the 2023/2024 financial year third quarter crime statistics for the period from 1 October to 31 December 2023.

According to the stats released by Police Minister Bheki Cele in February, one of the major contributors to murders in South Africa has been mob justice attacks, which saw just above 430 people killed in the third quarter.

Gauteng registered the highest, with 84 mob justice attacks, followed by the Eastern Cape (80) and KwaZulu-Natal (78).

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