Young girl’s murder shocks

The Moyo family in Soshanguve Block XX are still grieving after the brutal killing of little Grace Moyo by a male relative a few weeks ago. The Ga-Rankuwa police suspect that a beer bottle was used to stab her repeatedly in the neck until she lost her life. Apparently the suspect was spotted at a certain tavern in Ga-Rankuwa View before he left towards the mountains in Zone 4, where he is alleged to have murdered the girl. It is alleged that Grace met her death that day because her mother refused to give the suspect money to buy liquor.

Masesi Moyo, mother of the deceased, spoke to Record at her home in Dunuza, Block XX about the tragic death of her child at the hands of a man she had treated with love. “I son;t know how I will ever get over this. All I have left now are fond memories my little Ntwana,” she said while sobbing. “That it was done by a person we lived with and trusted hurts most. We never suspected that he could do it. Ntwana was a very loving girl. She used to share jokes and laugh with the man who killed her.”

Talking about her child, Masesi related how little Grace was always a helpful child, especially to her friends at school. “She had many friends and was really doing well at school.” She spoke about the feeling of being robbed of her child. “It is like when a person takes a poisonous needle and slowly puts it in your chest, knowing you will suffocate for the rest of your life,” said Masesi.

She described the suspect, who appeared in the Ga-Rankuwa Magistrate’s Court in Zone 5 last week. “We stayed with him here in the house and he was a very good man, filled with love. How could I ever have known that I had taken a snake into my house. This should be a warning to other women, do not trust men at all,” an upset Masesi said.

Grace’s aunt, Melda Ramayila, told Record that her brutal killing affected the entire community, not only her friends and family. “She was well-known in the community and had a lot of friends that she helped out with their schoolwork on a daily basis. Her death has left us scarred, sometimes we cannot sleep,” she said. Ramayila hopes the suspect will get a life sentence. The family also accused the man of house break-ins and theft before he took Grace to school (Lesedi Primary School) and took her away with him to Boikhutsong in Ga-Rankuwa.

Police spokesperson, Warrant Officer Matthews Nkoadi, confirmed that based on their preliminary investigations, the suspect was spotted in a tavern around Ga-Rankuwa during school hours with the victim, who was dressed in school uniform. He stated that the suspect is alleged to have stabbed the child with a broken beer bottle and left her to die. “After we were notified of the incident by a passer-by, we immediately went to the scene. I can confirm that a 38-year-old man was arrested following our investigation,” he said.

Nkoadi added they had also established that the suspect had often threatened the girl with death. He was charged with kidnapping and murder and has been remanded in custody for further investigations. He will appear again in court early next month on 9 June.