ADVERTISEMENT:

 

The scene where a burnt and decomposed body was found.

Is it Hlulani?

 

The case of the missing 17-year-old Malamulele woman, Hlulani Maswanganyi, took another turn on Monday when a body believed to be hers was found in bushes around the Nandoni Dam.

The grissly find happened when a fisherman stumbled across a badly burnt body in an advanced state of decomposition. The body seemed to have been doused in a flammable substance and set alight as bushes around the body were also burnt. Hlulani and her one month-old son, Timothy Mbavala, were allegedly abducted by a Malamulele traffic officer, Masingita Chavani (45), almost two months ago. The child was later found safely, while Hulani has been missing since then.

Chavani and an accomplice, aged 22, were arrested in connection with the case and have appeared in court on several occasions. Their case has been postponed to 14 December and they remain in custody.

After being arrested, the two took the police on a wild-goose chase, taking them from one location to the other. At first, the young man arrested took the police to Nandoni, but pointed out the wrong spot. The following day he is believed to have taken them to another spot, but nothing was found there either.

During the court appearances of the two, community members came to court in support of the family, demanding that they show the police where the young mother was, but nothing came to light.

After the discovery on Monday afternoon, family members rushed to the scene, but the police could not work on the scene as it was already late and dark. The scene had to be put under police guard overnight. As early as six in the morning, family members arrived, hoping to identify the body, but it became a very difficult exercise as only part of the head could be recognised.

After police and doctors had worked on the body and the crime scene, family members took turns in trying to identify the body, but most said they could not see any feature that would convince them that it was indeed Hlulani. Mr Wilson Mahlawule, a close family member, said he had reason to believe that the body could be that of Hlulani.

"The young suspect pointed out to the police that he had dumped the body around here and this leaves us with no reason not to believe that the body could be hers. They came here at night and the man pointed out the wrong place, but the following day he led them somewhere else, instead of coming back here, and the police lost track," he said.

The missing woman's aunt, Ms Bertha Khosa, said the state of the body made it very difficult for them to identify the body. "We cannot rush to conclusions. The body is badly burnt and decomposed and there is no way that we could be 100% sure that it is Hlulani. We will only be informed by the forensic results if it is her," she said.

Hlulani's husband, Mr Elvis Maswanganyi, however, is sure that it is her body. "I know her very well and there is no way I could not recognise her. I have seen her head and the scalp is hers," said Maswanganyi.

Saselamani police spokesperson W/O Sam Matsimbi said that forensic tests would be done to establish the identity of the victim.

 

News - Date: 30 November 2015

Recent Articles

Search for a story:

 

Family members anxiously keep vigil at the scene where the body was found.

Hlulani Maswanganyi, who has been missing for two months.

Police experts arrive at the scene the body was found.

Officials remove the body believed to be that of Hlulani from the scene where it was found.

 

ADVERTISEMENT

 

Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

Email:

ADVERTISEMENT: