A 28-year-old father, who allegedly threw his four-year-old son in front of motor vehicles on a busy main road at Tshifulanani, will appear in court this week on a charge of attempted murder.

The incident, which shocked community members, took place last Sunday afternoon, after the father had allegedly confronted his wife about a restraining order which she had applied for and which was supposed to be heard on June 5.

According to a police report, an argument ensued and the husband took up a stick to assault his wife. She evaded the attack, took up her four-year-old son and ran away. The husband gave chase and caught up with her alongside the main road. According to the police report, the husband then grabbed the child away from the mother and threw him onto the road, in front of the oncoming traffic. When an oncoming vehicle stopped in time, before overrunning the child, the father allegedly grabbed the child once again and ran towards the nearby bushes, while his wife was screaming for help.

A member of the community came to her aid and fired two warning shots in the air. The suspect then came to a halt and a fight started, during which the community member hit the suspect on the head with the butt of his licensed pistol. He overpowered the suspect and escorted him to the Lwamondo satellite police station, where the suspect was arrested. After his arrest, he was taken to the Tshilidzini hospital where he was treated for minor injuries on the head and then discharged.

The suspect was to appear in the Vuwani Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday this week.