TWEEFONTEIN – Two young men on their early 20’s, were brutally killed by a mob accusing them of stealing copper cables.
The young men are believed to be from Tweefontein near KwaMhlanga. They were allegedly kidnapped during the early hours of Tuesday morning and driven in a truck to an unknown bush where they were brutally assaulted.
After their assailants realised that they were lying motionless, they then transported them to Kwaggafontein Clinic where they dumped them. Nurses alerted the police and when they arrived, the men were certified dead.
The police have arrested two suspects in this regard and they are expected to appear before the KwaMhlanga Magistrate’s Court soon.
In a separate incident, in Siyabuswa, a group of people kidnapped a 30-year-old man and tied him to a tree, covered him with refuse bags, poured paraffin on him and set him alight on September, 8 2013.
The man was rescued by police after they received information from concerned community members. He is currently in a critical condition in the hospital as a result of the injuries sustained from the evil action.
No one has been arrested for this attempted murder case and we request anyone with information that can assist the police to apprehend the perpetrators to contact Siyabuswa Police Station at (013) 973 1301 or (013) 973 1942.
As the police, this barbaric and ruthless act is described as inhuman and uncalled for, it must be condemned with the contempt it deserves. The conduct of individuals taking the law into their own hands is defined as criminal and we warn the perpetrators of vigilantism to seize to operate this gruesome and illegal act.
When crime is committed, the legal principle to embark on is to summon the police to attend the scene. The police are vested with powers by the Constitution of the Republic in terms of section 205 (3). Under this legislation, “police are to prevent, combat and investigate crime, to maintain public order, to protect and secure the inhabitants of the Republic and their property, and to uphold and enforce the law.”
On the basis of this constitutional mandate, community members are therefore required to be law abiding and good citizens of the Republic and allow the structures of government to execute their functions without any prejudice.
There are a number of people that have been apprehended for these acts of vigilantism and thus should be a clear indication that vigilantism is and will never be tolerated anywhere else in the country. Vigilantism is severely punishable by law.
