Tragic end to search for missing Bronkhorstspruit boy

The search for a missing five-year-old Bronkhorstspruit boy came to a tragic end when remains uncovered at a plot in a farming area in the town proved to be his.

Lesley Malibongwe, a child with a speech impediment, went missing from his home in Zithobeni on May 9.

His mother Thembi Dube, said she left the boy with family at home while running errands in town.

She was told that the boy had been playing in the yard when he suddenly disappeared without a trace.

“The gate was found opened and we couldn’t find him anywhere,” she said.

“He mostly played in the yard and when he went out; he wouldn’t go too far and he was always where we could see him,” she said.

For four months, community members, friends and family joined the police in searching for the boy without any luck.

Until the family received a call last month, informing them that remains had been found and DNA tests needed to be run against the mother’s, to see if they could match those of Lesley.

“I was contacted by police yesterday [Monday] and I was told that it was, in fact, my boy,” she said.

“I am in so much pain. The past four months have been heavy on us, we could not eat or sleep, wondering where he could be.

“Every single day for months we were in tears.”

The boy’s remains were found at an area known as Roodepoort Farm, some 6km away from his home.

Dube said the remains found consisted of mostly bones and the clothes that the boy was wearing on the day of his disappearance.

“If we at least found an entire body, it would have been something else. All we found was bones,” she said.

“The body is not complete. I suffer from a heart condition and since Lesley’s disappearance my heart isn’t holding up. I have been going in and out of hospitals.”

During the time of Lesley’s disappearance, another family from a neighbouring area, Rethabiseng, marked a year since they last saw their four-year-old son who had also gone missing.

When Bandile’s Skhosana’s lifeless body was eventually found, it was underneath a rock with stab wounds.

To date, no arrests have been made.

While there was no certainty as to what exactly happened to Lesley, his family remained hopeful that police investigations would give answers.

Dube said she would miss her vibrant smart boy who loved playing and watching TV.

“We will miss him and the noise he used to make. Even though he could not speak, he found ways to express himself using sounds and we will never get to hear that again.”

Bronkhorstspruit police spokesperson Constable Munyadziwa Ramovha said on the day the remains were found, police received a call from a farming area known as plot Roodepoort, Bronkhorstspruit.

“On arrival, they found human bones, a grey T-shirt and blue trousers. The deceased was unknown at that time when an inquest docket was opened,” she said.

“The investigative officer took the mother’s DNA to see whether they would match those of the bones found.

“The results came back confirming that the bones were those of Lesley Malibongwe.”

Ramovha asked members of the community to always keep an eye on their children and always know their whereabouts.

She said police were still conducting further investigations into Lesley’s case and urged anyone with any information to contact the investigating officer Sergeant Mabusha on 071 675 7300.

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