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Staff of the forensic unit of the police investigate the body of young Fency before taking her away to the mortuary.

Mother in custody after death of child

 

A woman who was arrested for killing her own baby has been denied bail in the Mutale Magistrate’s Court.

Lutendo Khorommbi (32) appeared in court on Monday and the case was postponed to 23 February. She has been remanded in custody.

Mutale police spokesperson WO Tshilidzi Nyambeni said Khorommbi had been arrested last Friday (22 January), following an incident that had happened the previous night.

"The accused opened a missing child docket with us on Thursday night after she claimed that her three-year-old girl, Fency Khorommbi, had gone missing from her house at Mulodi village.”

Nyambeni added that the mother told them that she had been sleeping with her three children in the room. She said that she left the room to use the outside toilet and when she got back, Fency was missing. "She claimed that she was suffering from a running stomach, which forced her to leave the room often.”

According to the mother’s statement to the police, when she arrived back in the room at around 21:00, “she claimed she was shocked to find that only her six-month-old baby and her 11-year-old child were in the room.”

A missing person case was opened and a search started immediately, until the body of little Fency was found about 500 meters away from her home the following morning at around 11:30. She had an open wound on the left side of her forehead.

"Following tough questions from our investigators, Khorommbi confessed on Thursday afternoon that the child had died after she had slapped her in the face and she had fallen to the floor. She claimed that she was emotional when she slapped the child after she found her baby crying while lying on the floor next to where Fency was sleeping,” Nyambeni added.

According to the police spokesperson, the mother said that she had slapped Fency after she had failed to explain why the baby was crying. "Khorommbi told us that she had decided to dump Fency’s body after she had failed to resuscitate her," said Nyambeni.

Fency's death had earlier sent shockwaves around the village and the surrounding areas amid fears that she might have been the victim of a ritual killing. A community member, Mr Jerry  Masevhe, who took part in searching for the missing child, is extremely upset about the situation.

“I cannot believe that when I took part in searching for the child we would find the young girl wrapped in a blanket inside a plastic bag. We later learned that the mother of the young girl had been arrested and charged with the murder,” said Masevhe.

Ms Florence Radzilani, chairperson of the ANC Women’s League in Vhembe, said that she was horrified about the situation. “We are making a clarion call to all women who have family problems to consult social workers and pastors, so that they can get some help in resolving their problems,” Radzilani said.

News - Date: 30 January 2015

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Fency Khorommbi (3).

The accused, Lutendo Khorommbi (32).

 

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Silas Nduvheni

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