Mother allegedly kills children, poisons self

Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Leonard Hlathi said the neighbours noticed the two children aged five and 18-month-old lying unconscious on the floor in a house at Xhimhungwe Trust, near Hazyview, on Monday and called police.

“When police arrived at the scene, they discovered that the five-year-old boy had injuries on the face, body and the 18-month-old baby girl was strangled. They further discovered the suspect was lying on the floor with her mouth covered with white foam and suspected to have poisoned herself in an apparent attempt to commit suicide,” Hlathi added.

He said both children were certified dead at the scene and the woman was rushed to the hospital for medical treatment. The motive for the killing is currently unknown and investigations are ongoing.

The woman is expected to appear at the Mkhuhlu Magistrates’ Court as soon as she is discharged from the hospital.

In April, a woman allegedly poisoned her twins in Mohlakeng, Randfontein, on the West Rand.

The 49-year-old father of the twins said his wife prayed at about 9pm the previous evening. In her prayer she said: “I don’t know if I will bury my mother first or if she will bury me first.”

“At about 10pm, she repeated the same prayer. When I asked her about the meaning of her prayer, she did not answer me,” he said.

A neighbour, Patricia Moeti, 39, said at about 10am she saw the suspect with her hands on her head, pleading for help. “She said she poisoned her twins with rat poison,” said Moeti.

“When I looked on the bed, I saw one child lying helpless and seemingly weak, the other was asleep. I then ran out and screamed for help,” she added.

Tarlton police spokesperson Constable Lucky Matombe said the mother had tried to kill herself by stabbing herself several times in her upper body.

– Caxton News Service