Police launch probe after newborn baby found murdered and dumped

The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe has ordered an immediate probe into the brutal murder of a newborn child.

The body of the baby was found dumped at a house in Ga-Mashabela village in the Masemola policing area on Thursday.

Grim Discovery

It is understood members of the family made the grim discovery of the body of a newborn baby wrapped in plastic bag on their doorstep.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said officers were summoned to the scene and upon arrival, started with initial investigations.

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“It is believed that the baby girl who is about a day old was strangled before she was put inside the bag. It was also found that the body was already at decomposition stage. The mother of the child has not yet been identified.”

Investigations

Ledwaba said police have opened a case of murder and the circumstances surrounding the incident will be determined by ongoing investigations.

Hadebe said the incident is horrendous and disturbing.

“The investigators must be relentless in hunting down the suspect(s) responsible for this barbaric act and bring them to book.”

“We call on community members to come foward with any information about the mother of the child or about the murder to speed up the investigation,” said Hadebe.

Ledwaba has urged anyone with information that can assist with the investigation to contact their nearest police station, the crime stop number 0860010111 or utilize the MySAPSApp.

Possible Hit at KZN Shool

Meanwhile, police are still searching for two suspects after they intercepted suspected hitmen at a school in Newlands East, KwaZulu-Natal.

One person was killed in a shootout with officers on Wednesday.

It is understood officers received information of a possible hit that was going to be carried out at a school in the area.

Police did not indicate who the target of the hit was.

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