No bail for Muledane mother

A 42-year-old crèche owner from Muledane, who allegedly faked the death of her daughter in order to cash in on insurance, was refused bail when she appeared in the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court last Friday.

Court B at the Magistrate’s Court was filled to capacity by relatives of the accused, community members and non-profit organisations that fight for the rights of women and children.  In refusing bail, Magistrate Jonathan Rapudi said that the woman, who is married to a Nigerian man, was a flight risk. Rapudi added that if she had faked the child's death, the child would not be safe.

The case was postponed to 30 November for further investigations.  The woman was arrested after her daughter allegedly tried to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills, when the mother allegedly refused to help her acquire an identity document, which was needed at school. Police started enquiries about the attempted suicide and the investigation revealed more shocking evidence than they expected.

According to the police, the mother had confessed that she had faked her daughter’s death to claim money from a national insurance company. She claimed to have received R12 000 from the company, a police spokesperson said.

Further investigations revealed that a death certificate was issued in the girl's name in 2008.

The mother is said to have handed herself over to the police and also admitted in an affidavit that she faked her daughter's death for financial gain. She is also alleged to have gone so far as to ask forgiveness from the community, but has been charged with fraud.

Meanwhile, two more suspects have been arrested in the same case. The two are a medical doctor, Sililo Lebea, and mortuary owner Tshilidzi Makhale, who were granted bail of R5 000 and R2 000 respectively.

Their case was postponed to 30 November.

Date:14 October 2016

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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