Father accused of hacking his son to death

Moses Tshigomana (58) made a brief appearance in the Dzanani Magistrate's Court on Monday, 19 August, following his arrest for the alleged murder of his 33-year-old son. Thabelo Tshigomana was killed on Thursday, 15 August, at Mauluma Village in Nzhelele.

The court has postponed the case to 4 September to allow for further police investigations.

The deceased was the second-born of three children of Moses Tshigomana. The tragic incident occurred around 19:30. According to Vhembe police spokesperson W/O Vuledzani Dathi, the Mphephu police responded to a distress call about a violent altercation between a father and son at Mauluma Village.

“Upon arrival at the scene, they encountered the mother of the deceased sitting by the side of the road. She informed the police that she had fled her home to escape the escalating violence, leaving her husband and son fighting. The police proceeded to the Tshigomana residence, where they found Moses Tshigomana calmly sitting outside the house,” Dathi said.

When the police questioned the father about the incident, he allegedly responded, "It is my house; I do as I wish."

Inside the house, officers discovered the lifeless body of Thabelo Tshigomana lying on a sofa, covered in blood.

“Efforts to communicate with him were futile, and emergency medical services personnel were summoned to the scene, where they pronounced him dead. The deceased had sustained a grievous open wound at the back of his ear, believed to have been inflicted by a sharp object. Further investigation led the police to a bloodied spade, hidden in another room, which is believed to be the murder weapon,” W/O Dathi added.

Dathi also confirmed that Moses Tshigomana was taken to Siloam Hospital before being placed in police custody because angry community members had beaten him.

A source close to the family told Limpopo Mirror that the fight began when the father tried to beat the mother, but the son intervened to defend her.

“They were always fighting when they were drunk. Even the neighbours took time before responding because they were used to them fighting. After the incident, he went to buy two beers at the local tavern and bragged to people that he had killed his son. The community thought he was joking, but when they went to his house to check, they saw that he was telling the truth and started beating him,” added the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Date:23 August 2024

By: Maanda Bele

Maanda  Bele, born and raised in Nzhelele Siloam, studied journalism at the Tshwane University of Technology. He is passionate about current news and international affairs. He worked as part of the Zoutnet team as an intern in 2017. He is currently a freelance journalist specialising in news from the Vhembe district.

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