A 27-year-old man faces charges of murder after he allegedly stabbed his girlfriend, Ridodzula Mudzanani (19), and used the body of an unidentified man to fake his death.

He was arrested at his hideout in Mahwelereng Zone 17, in Limpopo, yesterday.

On September 3, the police received a report about a woman who had been stabbed in Ha-Magidi village in Polokwane. On arrival, they found emergency medical services attending to her, but she died of her injuries before she could be taken to hospital.

Police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba says preliminary investigations revealed that the deceased had met her boyfriend while walking in public. It is reported that a passer-by heard her screams and emergency services were called.

The teenager was stabbed with a sharp object, allegedly by the suspect, who fled on foot.

It was later learnt that the couple had two children and that domestic violence could not be ruled out.

In a twist of events, Ledwaba says the body of a man was found a week after the incident, with the suspect’s ID next to the body, giving the impression that he had died.

“Investigations revealed that the deceased’s ID was in his pocket and the body was not that of the suspect. A trace led police to the Mahwelereng area, where the suspect was arrested,” Ledwaba says.

The man will appear in the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court soon on charges of murder.

Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe warned criminals that the long arm of the law will catch up with them eventually.

“It is evident that they will be nabbed, prosecuted, and incarcerated for the evil crimes they commit,” she says.