TONGA – In the last month there have been numerous people attacked and robbed, with police tracking down a few suspects and successfully retrieving stolen items.
Last Wednesday at 00:30 a group of suspects broke into a house in Mzinti, threatened to kill the family, then ransacked the house. They fled with cellphones and a VW Polo.
The incident was reported to Tonga SAPS, who tracked the car. It was found in Boschfontein, about 40 kilometre from the crime scene.
This year police have also had to deal with several incidents of mob justice. The most recent was on Friday around 11:40 in Mangweni.
A man was beaten to death and another seriously injured after community members caught them allegedly robbing a business. The second man escaped death after law enforcement intervened and rescued him from the angry mob. He is currently fighting for his life in hospital under police guard.
“Tonga police are concerned about the way the community members continue to conduct themselves in the fight against crime. It has become a norm that whenever the community catches a thug they fatally wound or injure them badly. This results in an increase in the crime rate and community members being arrested for taking the law into their own hands,” Tonga spokesman Mzwandile Nyambi stated.
Community members are urged to contact the police with any information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects and notify them of any suspicious persons or activities. “Instead of attacking suspects, contact the police and let justice take its course,” Nyambi urged.
Read about other crime:
- Safeguard your home to prevent break-ins
- Violence break out during protest in Tonga
- Suspects hijack vehicle then rob shop
