The family of a man whose lifeless body was found on a street next to his home say they have more questions than answers and are baffled by his mysterious death. The man, Mr. Calvin Ravele (47) of Mapa outside Thohoyandou, was found by a passerby, who notified members of the community, next to Ravele’s gate.

The mysterious incident that is still on people’s lips happened on Sunday, 12 May, at around 05:00. The late man’s younger brother, Mr Nyadzeni Ravele, said he was alerted about his brother’s body at around 06:00 by a local resident who phoned him, informing him about the incident.

“On hearing about it, I rushed to the scene to find people already gathered there. The police were already present. Forensic pathologists were also summoned and arrived to scrutinise the body before taking it away to a government mortuary. We were also allowed to have a closer look at the body, and there were no visible injuries; we only noticed blood coming out through the nose,” he said.

Ravele further indicated that the previous day, his brother had left with a friend to attend a ceremony at Mukumbani. “They came back late, around 21:00, and ended up at the local tavern, where they continued enjoying themselves. Information is that he was last seen leaving with a local man and a woman who are known in the community. What happened thereafter is not known,” he said.

The family members believe that Calvin was killed somewhere else. “The killers might have attempted to dump his body here at home but were disturbed by the bright light at his home. They ultimately dumped the body on the road,” Ravele said. Their suspicions seem to be strengthened by the post-mortem results that indicated his ribs and chest bone were broken. He also had internal bleeding that is reminiscent of an assault and attack.

“People are talking out there, and we believe there is no smoke without fire. We are in pain as a family and would like to get answers in order to get closure about his death,” he added. Calvin was buried on Friday, 17 May.

The local civic chairperson, Mr. Khathutshelo Ramalida, said they were concerned about the prevalence of crime in the village. “There is a lot of criminality in the village like cable theft, robberies, and people disappearing under mysterious circumstances. As the leadership, we are concerned about the latest incident, and our plea is that we stand together as a village and assist the police in tracing the killers. We need peace in this village, and this will not happen if we do not work with the police and assist with evidence,” he said.

Vhembe police spokesperson W/O Vuledzani Dathi confirmed the incident. “On receiving the alert, we rushed to the scene, where we found the man lying dead next to his home. We have since opened an inquest docket, and we are appealing for information about the death. Any information that can assist in the investigation can be directed to the investigating officer, Sgt Tshikonelo Oscar Mudau, on 076 387 7780.”