A 17-year-old suspect has been arrested for the brutal murder of grade 11 pupil, Hlologelo Malatji.
And the family breathes a sigh of relief after the teenager was caught.
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Hlologelo (16), a pupil at Pheretla Maake Secondary School, was found dead on Friday, 1 May, with her head buried next to her body in the bushes in Pharare Village, Limpopo.
Police said the 17-year-old suspect was already at the crime scene and led officers to the exact spot where the body was discovered.
Police spokesman Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said the suspect initially tried to mislead investigators.
“The suspect initially claimed he and the deceased were attacked by four armed people driving a blue VW Polo. He alleged they were forced into the vehicle and taken to the bushes where he was stabbed before escaping,” said Ledwaba.
Various police units, including the provincial Murder and Robbery Unit, Mopani Tracking Team and Maake Detectives launched an intensive probe that later exposed the suspect’s alleged lies.
The teenager was nabbed while receiving medical treatment at a local hospital on Saturday, 2 May.
Hlologelo’s uncle, Aubrey Mateta, expressed the family’s devastation.
“When we arrived at the crime scene to identify her, we found that she’d been mutilated. That broke our hearts. We’re comforted by the support we received from the community. We’re relieved the suspect has been arrested after police investigations uncovered the truth,” he said.
Mateta was speaking during a visit by the Department of Transport and Community Safety on Tuesday, 5 May, where MEC Violet Mathye described Hlologelo’s murder as a heinous act and expressed deep concern over the rising incidents of gender-based violence, particularly cases involving the rape and killing of young people in communities.
Hlologelo will be laid to rest on Saturday, 9 May.
