Grandson accused of killing granny over pension money

An alleged quarrel over pension money between a grandson and his grandmother ended in tragedy on Saturday when the granny was hit with an iron bar and died instantly.

The death of the 79-year-old Maria Ndou of Kutama had raised more questions than answers within the community.

A neighbour, Ms Pinkie Ramovha, described this week how she had heard the gogo screaming, saying that she was being assaulted. Ms Ramovha rushed to the scene, only to witness her neighbour being hit with an iron bar. She said that the incident had shocked her and the family.  “She was really a good granny who would not hurt a fly. What makes it more painful is that no one is prepared to shed light on what had actually happened,” she said.

A large number of curious community members rushed to the house after hearing of the old lady’s death. The man who had allegedly assaulted the granny had apparently run away after the incident and left the bleeding victim lying on the ground.

The deputy chairperson of the traditional court of Tshikhwarani (Khoro), Mr Phanuel Mulaudzi, visited the family of the deceased shortly after the incident. “Incidents of this nature are not going to be tolerated,” he said. “This was the most gruesome incident I have seen in my life. The memory will stick in my mind until I die.” 

Mulaudzi sympathised with the family and appealed to community members to refrain from such brutal behaviour. “Whoever is responsible should be removed from the community,” he said.

Tshilwavhusiku police spokesperson W/O David Nkanyane confirmed the incident, saying that they had opened a murder case. He confirmed that the woman’s grandson, Potlane Munonoka (32), had been arrested in connection with the murder. He appeared in the Tshilwavhusiku Magistrate's Court on Monday and the case was postponed to 21 June. The suspect remains in custody.

Ms Ndou will be buried on Saturday at Kutama. The service will start at 6:00.

Date:27 May 2017

By: Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.

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