Friends burn 8 houses to avenge their own

THE death of 26-year-old Denis Chabalala from Bode village, who was attacked by a group of youngsters while walking home from a tavern in Dzingi-dzingi village last week, has sparked a tit-for-tat retaliation by his friends and other residents, who are angry over the way he died.

According to information, on Saturday, only a day before Chabalala was laid to rest, his friends and other residents allegedly took revenge for his death.

A resident who prefers to remain anonymous said they torched several houses that belonged to the families of those they suspected of being involved in Chabalala’s death.

Residents said they were angry because Chabalala was known as “a good boy who would not hurt a fly”.

According to eyewitnesses to Chabalala’s murder, he was accosted by some youngsters who assaulted and stabbed him to get his cellphone.

Speaking at his funeral on Sunday, his friends who were involved in burning down the houses said what they had done was done in a fit of rage and that it had been something beyond their control.

“When someone is happy you cannot control how that person acts or laughs and the same applies to when someone is angry,” one of Chabalala’s friends, Dan Mhangani said.

Another friend, Oscar Khosa advised the bereaved family not to be concerned or feel guilt over what residents had done in retaliation of Chabalala’s death.

The comments by Chabalala’s friends came after Thomas Makondo, who spoke on behalf of Chabalala’s siblings, said violence would distract the police from working on the case.

Police spokesperson, Col Ronél Otto, said there were three suspects in Chabalala’s murder, but only one was in custody. “The other two have fled and we are still looking for them.”

With regard to the arson case, she said there were “eight houses that were burned, but nobody was injured in these incidents,” she said, adding that no one had been arrested yet.