A man who attempted to rape an 89-year-old woman was tied to an electrical pole by angry community members and beaten to death in the Luvisi area near Nquthu in the early hours of Saturday.

A 29-year-old has been arrested and is to appear today in the Nquthu Magistrates’ Court on a charge of murder, but outraged community members want him released from custody as they say he and the others involved in the vigilante killing were defending the elderly.

People in the Luvisi area told the Courier that Celimpilo Njoko (27) of Luvisi had arrived at the home of Langazile Ncobo (89) who was asleep in her home with her grandson, Nkosenhle (9).

Ms Ncobo said the man had banged on the door at about 2am, demanding that she open up for him. When she refused he gained entry through a window.

She said he was drunk and wanted to have sex with her. She tried to fight him off, during which time Nkosenhle jumped through the open window to call for help.

Several members of the community arrived and dragged the attacker away from Ms Ncobo and started beating him. He called out for help from Ms Ncobo, but the group of men dragged him away.

Later, he was found tied to a pole about 30 metres away from Ms Ncobo’s home. He was dead with open wounds to his head and body.

Njoko’s family acknowledged to the Courier that he was a ‘known thief’, but were adamant that the community should have handed him over to the police rather than kill him.

They said they had no money to give him a proper funeral. They said they were also disappointed that a local induna, Mfanuvela Ngobese, had not stepped in to prevent his death. However, Mr Ngobese said he wanted to be on the scene but had been warned by police to stay away for his own safety.

One man was later arrested for murder, but the elderly in the Luvisi area say he and others were protecting them when the police could not.

Woman’s throat slit

In another horrific case in the Nquthu area, a 64-year-old was found with her throat slit in Nondweni on Saturday morning. Police later arrested a 19-year-old man who was still dressed in blood-smeared clothes. It appears as if the woman was murdered two days earlier. The motive for the murder was not immediately known.