‘Imagine the sound of a chicken or sheep being slaughtered, then think of a human being whose throat has been slit.’
This was the horrific imagery sketched by the family of 42-year-old Lenah Lethoba whose lifeless body was found at the hostel toilets in Ikageng on Saturday.
Const. Kelebogile Trom, the SAPS spokesperson confirmed the incident and said the police were called to the scene at the GG hostel at about 06:30 that morning. ‘The police found the body of a female with multiple stab wounds. There was a trail of blood from the back entrance to where she was found,’ said Trom. She says no one has been arrested for the murder.
According to the victim’s cousin, she was found on the filthy public toilet floor surrounded by human waste and dirty, old clothing. ‘Her throat was slit…it also seems that she was killed in another room and her body dragged to where she was found.
‘We are deeply hurt. She did not deserve to die so brutally, especially at the place where she was found.’
The family says the victim’s life was not all happiness and she was abused by her boyfriend whom, they say, put her through periods of abuse and torture. ‘She had stab wounds all over her body dating back from a very long time. Last week, he stabbed her under the left breast. She obtained a protection order but cancelled it because she was so afraid of him.
‘The boyfriend once poured paraffin all over her, intending to set her alight.’
The abuse was so terrifying, according to one of the older women. ‘The man once poured glue on her genitals. He always used to tell her that he is going to kill her,’ she said.
Although no one has yet been linked to the murder of Lenah, the victim’s family wants justice for the murder of their loved one. ‘All we want is for justice to be served. The person who murdered her must spend his whole life in prison,’ said the older woman.
Another family member says he is concerned about the shocking state of the hostel. ‘The municipality must do something about the hostels and maybe sell them off for development. It is a dirty place where people smoke nyaope and do just what they like. It is just an abattoir where people are killed. It is not safe,’ he said. Lenah leaves behind three daughters and three sons aged between seven and 20.
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