The community of Ha Matidza in the Dzanani area is concerned about the way the Mphephu SAPS Police Station is handling the case of Funani Mufunwaini, who is believed to have been killed in a ritual murder.

Mufunwaini (23) was found dead between Tshitunitshafhasi and Matidza a fortnight ago. She is believed to have been dragged from a tavern by an unknown man to a nearby bush. The incident is said to have happened on the Sunday, but she was allegedly found dead 4km from the tavern only on Tuesday morning. The deceased has left two children behind.

Members of the community in the area believe that the young woman had been killed in a ritual killing, and as a result, she cannot be laid to rest until the victims have been arrested.

Ms Marandela Mufunwaini, the deceased’s mother, is reported to have been chased away from the Mphephu SAPS three times, in an attempt to open a case of a missing person, before she was informed that her daughter had been found dead.

In an interview with Mirror, she confirmed that she was turned away at the police station while trying to open a case. "I was only told by police officers who were on duty that I had to go and look for my daughter at Siloam Hospital or at her boyfriend’s place. My daughter would have not been killed if the police had responded quickly. There is a trend in the police of responding only when a person has already been stabbed or killed. Though I tried begging them to go and look for my daughter, they did not listen to me," says the sad mother who added that she will never have trust in the police again.

Mirror has established from Dzanani Police station that a case of a missing person had been opened, but the spokesperson at the police station, Const Litshani Muthuli, was not available for comment.

At a community meeting that was held over the weekend by the Matidza residents to discuss the mystery around Funani’s death, community members demanded that the results of a post mortem in the case be made public, since ritual killing is a public problem.

Community members, who commented on condition of anonymity, said that the forensic department should be the one conducting the post mortem and not a private general practitioner like what the Mphephu SAPS are doing.

The community leader in the Matidza village, Mr Phungo Matidza, revealed that people no longer feel safe in their own homes. He added that: "If you don’t see one of your children for two to three hours, you start to wonder whether the child is still alive or not."

He further emphasized that community members must be cooperative and work with the police for the culprit to be arrested and locked up.