Shock and outrage has followed the murder of Pietermaritzburg paediatrician Dr Zamambo Siphokazi Mkhize, whose body was found stuffed into the boot of her car in Imbali J-Section on Friday night.

Mkhize’s VW Polo was found abandoned after her husband reported her missing when she didn’t return home from Harry Gwala Regional Hospital in Edendale where she worked.

She was supposed to have left work a little earlier than usual to take one of her two children for a hospital check-up.

Mkhize’s brother, Ntozonke, said his sister’s husband had repeatedly tried calling her on her cellphone but became gravely worried when she did not answer calls. He also contacted Tracker to ask for assistance in locating his wife’s car.

“My brother-in-law said she was supposed to have returned home at around 16:00 and was supposed to have taken their child to hospital. When she did not arrive, he then called my mother. After the conversation with my mother, he reported the matter to the police.

“We received a call from the police at around 20:00 saying they had located the vehicle in Imbali and, when we got to the scene, we found her body in the boot,” said the emotional Ntozonke.

A police source said Mkhize was shot in the head and it appeared that she had been assaulted, as she had a bruised and swollen eye. Both her handbag and her cellphone were missing.

Mkhize attained her master’s degree in 2011 and has practised medicine since then, one of only a few black female paediatricians in KZN.

The provincial Department of Health said Mkhize’s death was a huge blow to the sector.

Department of Health spokesperson Ntokozo Msphisa conveyed condolences to the bereaved family.

“This is a huge loss to the department and the medical fraternity as her profession is critical to saving lives daily. She reported for duty on the day and left early to attend to an emergency at home but never arrived.”

The department urged the police to leave no stone unturned in investigating and apprehending the perpetrators.

The South African Medical Association (Sama) has condemned the killing and called on the police to take serious action against crime.

Sama chairperson Dr Mvuyisi Mzukwa said the murder comes against a backdrop of a shortage of specialist doctors in the country.

“We are deeply concerned that our professionals are targeted as you will remember that this is not the first incident of our doctors being murdered. This comes against the backdrop of a shortage of specialists and medical practitioners in general.

“We send our condolences to the family because one can imagine the pain of losing a daughter, a sister, a wife, and a mother,” said Mzukwa.

Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Plessislaer police are investigating.

“Police responded to the scene and found the body of a woman with what looked like assault marks and a gunshot wound. The suspects are unknown at this stage and the motive for the killing has not yet been established,” said Netshiunda.

Earlier this month, a well-known Pietermaritzburg healthcare professional was gunned down at a busy intersection in Plessislaer.

Pharmacist Yunus Chothia’s bullet-riddled car and body were found near KwaPata, in Edendale.

The Witness reported at the time that gunmen fired both 9 mm and AK47 rounds at the driver’s side of the car, with Chothia sustaining multiple gunshot wounds.