The Makuya Police made a breakthrough when they arrested a 72-year-old man for the rape and murder of an elderly woman in Tshitavha-Sambandou village in Makuya near Thohoyandou.

According to Insp Mashudu Madida, police spokesperson at Makuya, they have opened a murder case after the discovery of the half-naked body of a 67-year-old resident of Tshitavha-Sambandouba, which was found on Sunday with an open wound to her throat.

The deceased allegedly went missing during the last week of 2008, and a missing persons docket was opened at the local police station. The following day she was found in the bushes,” Madida said.

After she had been reported missing, members of the community and relatives of the deceased went on a search, whereupon she was found lying dead in a pool of blood with a deep open wound in her throat.Her underwear had been placed next to her body. Police immediately opened a murder case and an intensive investigation was launched to find the perpetrators.

Their investigations yielded fruits as they wasted no time in arresting a 72-year-old male, Frans Munyai. He was charged with murder. Munyai appeared in the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court on December 30 and the case was postponed to February 4. The suspect was refused bail.

Madida thanked the local communities for being helpful in their investigations. "Had it not been for our communities, we would not have had a breakthrough in this case, but people broke their silence and tipped us off," he said.