Teen implicated in Thoriso murder allegedly stabbed someone last year

One of the Limpopo teenagers arrested in connection with Thoriso Themane’s murder is reportedly facing another attempted murder charge from last year.

The 15-year-old pupil, whose father is a retired warrant officer, allegedly stabbed a person at a party, reported The Sowetan.

A fellow student who claimed to have been at the party told the publication that the 15-year-old teen allegedly stabbed someone after being denied entry into a party he had been trying to gatecrash.

He reportedly opened a counter-charge of assault in the same matter.

His father reportedly told the publication: “I’m aware of the case as police informed [me] yesterday to come to the station; I’m in a meeting now.”

A police source also told the publication the case was still being investigated: “Police and prosecutors met yesterday (Tuesday) and decided to reopen the case.”

A video of one of the suspects has been circulating on social media, in which a pupil who is taking the video asks the suspect if he is happy that he killed someone, to which he replies in Sepedi: “I know you cannot do anything to my father.”

The video infuriated social media users, who vowed not to rest until justice was served, despite the suspect’s apparent protection.

Also read: Malema: Cop father of teen implicated in Thoriso Themane murder must be arrested

However, his father said he had been mistaken for thinking he was above the law, adding that he “confessed” to taking part in Themane’s assault, and kicking him “several times”.

The 15-year-old boy reportedly accused Themane of stealing one of his friend’s cellphones.

He told TimesLive: “I can’t send my son to do crime, it was just a group of naughty boys who got involved in something they know nothing about. Apparently, they chased the suspect until he jumped into a nearby property where a woman at the property summoned help. Two men responded and one of them hit the [now] deceased with a wheel spanner. So when my son and his friends joined in the attack, the man had already been bleeding.”

According to a Limpopo South African Police Service statement on Tuesday, Themane’s body was found dumped on Erasmus and Cestrum Avenue in Flora Park, Polokwane.

The SAPS said in a statement: “It is alleged that on 24 February at about 9.50am, a 27-year-old man was found lying along the streets in the city of Polokwane by a community member.

“The victim was taken to hospital but certified dead on arrival. The police were summoned and started with the initial investigations which revealed that the victim was assaulted by a group of people in the area and one person is currently taken in for questioning.

“The motive behind this incident is not clear at this stage but the ongoing police investigations will tell.”

Also read: Son of retired cop confesses to kicking Thoriso Themane ‘several times’

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