RESIDENTS of Witsands in Atlantis are in shock after a man allegedly killed his 37-year-old girlfriend, locked her shack and set it on fire in the early hours of Saturday, 6 August.
The woman’s brother Amandla Silulo (28) said he and other people were drinking and having fun with his sister, Siphokazi Silulo, and her boyfriend.
He said at around 1.30am, Siphokazi and her boyfriend (29) went to sleep.
But Amandla was shocked when he saw his sister’s shack on fire when he went to relieve himself.
Much to his horror, the door was tied with a chain and locked from the outside.
He quickly notified the others, broke the door open and dragged Siphokazi out.
When she was out, they realised she had stab wounds.
Amandla said his sister lived with the man after he moved in with her a few months ago.
The incident was reported to the patrollers called Witsands Crime Combat Unit, who quickly hunted for the suspect and caught him while he was escaping their kasi.
Magesh Lebepe, head of patrollers, said when they heard about the incident, they looked for pictures of the suspect on Facebook and distributed them in their groups.
Group member, Simamkele “Diya” Nokrayo, who transports workers from Witsands to surrounding areas, saw him looking for lifts.
“I offered him a lift. The lucky part is he said he wanted to buy food first before going to Malmesbury, so I stopped and asked him to buy food. It gave me an opportunity to communicate and send the location to my colleagues,” said Diya.
When the patrollers bust the man, Lebepe said he allegedly didn’t deny setting the shack on fire.
Nolufefe Mbombo from an organisation that fights gender-based violence in the area said the murder shocked them. “We are shaken by what happened, but we are grateful to the Witsands Crime Combat Unit who quickly responded and caught him,” she said.
Neighbourhood watch chairwoman, Phathiswa Nokrayo, said they are sad that a woman was killed during women’s month.
“We are saddened by this murder. We are now calling for the courts to give him a life sentence. He must rot in jail,” she said.
Police spokesman Captain Frederick Van Wyk said Atlantis cops opened a case of murder after they were called to Moki Street in Witsands.
“An inquest case docket was registered but after further investigation it was changed to murder. The suspect will appear in the Atlantis Magistrates Court once charged,” said Van Wyk.
