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Bokgabo Poo murder suspect was out on bail for allegedly raping 9-year-old girl – Lesufi
The suspect appeared in court on Monday.
Gauteng premier, Panyaza Lesufi briefs media in Johannesburg on 5 July 2022. Picture: Nigel Sibanda
Gauteng premier, Panyaza Lesufi says the man accused of murdering Bokgabo Poo was out on bail when he allegedly killed the four-year-old.
Ntokozo Zikhali appeared in the Benoni Magistrate’s Court heard on Monday in connection to the murder.
The 28-year-old, who was arrested in Boksburg last week, is facing charges of kidnapping, rape, murder, defeating the ends of justice and violating a corpse.
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Proceedings were earlier halted when Bokgabo’s father, Irvin Ndlovu, who tried to confront Zikhali.
“You killed my daughter, you killed my daughter!” Ndlovu shouted as he was held back by officers in court.
The case has been postponed to 24 October, for profiling and a formal bail application.
‘Rescind that bail as well’
Speaking to residents in Wattville, Ekurhuleni, Lesufi revealed that Zikhali has a pending case of rape against him.
“We believe the law must not even give him a chance to get bail again in life. We are [talking with] the NPA [National Prosecuting Authority] and Department of Justice to assist us because he is currently out on bail for another matter.
“He is accused of raping a nine-year-old girl so we need to rescind that bail as well. [With] this particular individual, we are dealing with the proper profiling so that we can understand what is it we can do to safeguard our communities,” he said.
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The premier pleaded with community members to come forward with any information that they may have on the case.
Bokgabo disappeared from Wattville last week Monday, with the leg of a child being found in a shallow grave in a yard in Tamboville the following day.
Police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo, said a mutilated body was discovered a few metres away from the house.
Church shooting
Meanwhile, Lesufi also addressed Wattville residents regarding the Diepsloot church shooting, which left a pastor dead and two other congregants injured.
The incident saw gang of five armed men storming the church and opened fire on 50 unsuspecting churchgoers during a robbery in Diepsloot last week Friday.
“We need a driven strategy to fight crime. We need to [make] resources [available], but we [also] need to take advantage of technology to fight crime,” Lesufi said.
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“Do you think that church anticipated that someone would come in and shoot at them? They were praying… if you can’t be safe while praying [then] where will you be safe?
“So we have to take this fight back to criminals which simple means we have to capacitate our law enforcement agencies. We have to get every cent that we have as a state to empower the police,” he continued.
Last week, the Gauteng premier announced that the province would increase its budget and recruit 6 000 people to assist police in law enforcement.
