Argieffoto (Foto: Tracey Adams/African News Agency/ANA)
A 17-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with the gruesome murder of a 16-year-old girl in Pharare in Limpopo.
Col. Malesela Ledwaba, police spokesperson, says the police received a complaint about the body of a girl found in the bushes on Friday around 18:00.
“Police officers immediately rushed to the scene where they were met by a 17-year-old boy who took them to a nearby wooded area where the naked, decapitated body of the victim was discovered.”
According to Ledwaba, the boy initially told the police that he and the girl were walking in Pharare when they were apparently stopped by the occupants of a blue VW Polo.
“He claimed the suspects, two men and two women, wore masks and were armed with firearms. According to his account, he and the victim were forcibly forced into the vehicle and taken to a wooded area by the side of the road.”
The boy further claimed that he suffered stab wounds to his arm and abdomen in the bushes before he managed to escape.
Ledwaba says a search of the scene later led to a further gruesome wound.
“The victim’s head was found buried near her body.”
Members of the provincial homicide and robbery unit, the Mopani detection unit and detectives from Maake immediately began an intensive investigation.
“The investigation led to the 17-year-old boy, who has since been admitted to a local hospital, being arrested on Saturday,” says Ledwaba.
According to Ledwaba, the boy is positively connected to the murder. Police also seized a weapon believed to have been used during the crime.
As the suspect is a minor, a probation officer will assess him in terms of the Children’s Act before deciding on his court appearance.
The police investigation continues.