Boy (5) fatally hit by car in front of brother

A 5-year-old died in hospital after being hit by a car in Ikageng. Koketso Motshweneng was running after his 8-year-old brother, Karabo when he was knocked down while trying to cross Kutlwanong Street in Ext. 11.

Selogile Leshage

February 8, 2016

Inseparable brothers who used to play together and go to the shop together. Sadly, death separated them when 5-year-old Koketso was hit by a car.

A 5-year-old died in hospital after being hit by a car in Ikageng.

Koketso Motshweneng was running after his 8-year-old brother, Karabo when he was knocked down while trying to cross Kutlwanong Street in Ext. 11.

Karabo watched in horror as a red Toyota Hilux bakkie struck his younger brother.

“I crossed over the street but Koketso got left behind. When I turned my head, I saw the bakkie hit him on the hip. That’s when he fell and the bakkie drove over him. All I could do was scream his name. The driver didn’t even hoot. I went over and wanted to pick my younger brother up but some woman pushed me away.”

Karabo said it all started when a man called ‘Oom Ben’ chased them on his bicycle while they were buying snacks from a nearby tuck-shop.

“He was scaring us and coming after us so we ran away without the snacks. Unfortunately, Koketso did not make it on time,” he said sadly.

The heartbroken mother of the two boys, Lerato Motshweneng, says she was in the house when the neighbour alerted her about the accident.

“The last time I saw the boys, was at about 10:00 when they went to buy 2 packets of snacks with their R2,” she said. When she rushed to the scene, she saw the driver of the bakkie carrying her son and putting him in the bakkie to take him to the clinic.

The boy’s father, Tebogo Malgas, who was also at the scene, told the man to rather go with him and take the boy to Potchefstroom Hospital.

“I first went to the police station to report the accident and then went to the hospital. That’s when I heard that my son had passed away,” Lerato said.

The mother says her son used to attend Thuto-Boswa pre-school.

Koketso’s mother, Lerato, is distraught about losing her last born, who used to ask her for donations for the creche by arguing that it’s Mandela’s money. Here she is with her first born son, Karabo, who still remembers how the car hit his younger brother.

“He would come back from crèche and say: ‘Mama I have homework, but we only have to draw’.”

Lerato described her son as a sweet boy who didn’t like to fight with the other kids.

“I also taught him to be well-mannered, to distinguish between an adult and a child and to respect people older than him. He used to say when he is grown up, he wants to work on a mine, build a beautiful house for me and buy me a car. He used to joke that he doesn’t want a wife and kids.”

“I loved my boy so much. Right now, I am weak. I can’t eat properly. I always have sleepless nights thinking about him. I am going to miss him,” she said.

Koketso will be buried at A17 Baipei, Ext. 11 this Saturday.

Ikageng SAPS spokesperson, Kelebogile Trom says the driver of the bakkie later handed himself over to the Ikageng police.

“Ikageng police would like to urge parents and the community to educate their children about road safety, especially on their way to and from school. Parents should also ensure that they know the whereabouts of their children,” she said.