Investigations continue in Magoro murders

The police at Hlanganani have confirmed that investigations are continuing in the two murder cases which took place on 11 and 12 June at Magoro village, Tiyani.

A 38-year-old Ethiopian national, Mr Beyane Nabeforc, was shot twice in the stomach and died on his way to the clinic on 11 June. The residents, however, helped the Ethiopian businesspeople to identify and find one of the three suspects, a man commonly known as The Great Maluleke. About 100 Ethiopians, some coming from Mpumalanga, allegedly gathered at Magoro and stoned Maluleke to death.

“Even if it were true that the business people and residents suspected The Great (Maluleke) to have killed Mr Nabeforc, they still had no right to take the law into their own hands and kill the presumed suspect,” said the police’s spokesperson, W/O Stephen Makhubele.

He said that the ghastly video, which showed people violently murdering The Great, had been forwarded to a special unit in Polokwane for focused investigations. “No person is allowed to kill another; we have got no law which says people must avenge any murder whatsoever,” he said.
Meanwhile, shortly after the killing of The Great on 12 June at a local tavern and cafe, a group within the community had said openly that they were going to search for, find and kill the other two suspects. The suspects were said to be residents of a neighbouring Olifantshoek village. The date for the killing was scheduled for 17 June, at around 09:00.

On that day the police, however, kept a watchful eye to make sure that no person or people committed any crimes of mob attacks or public violence.

“The situation in Magoro is under control,” Makhubele said. “Residents understand that it is the police’s duty to arrest the suspects of any crimes.”

So far, no arrest has been made in either case. All attempts to reach members of the Ethiopian community around Magoro proved fruitless.

Date:01 July 2015

By: Tshifhiwa Mukwevho

Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.

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