The usually packed Court D at the Thohoyandou Magistrate Court was almost empty during the appearance of an alleged ritual murder suspect. He appeared and many did not even know he was the alleged ritual murder suspect and so he went back to the cells unnoticed.

The expected crowds from Makonde that used to attend the previous ritual murder cases were nowhere to be seen.

The suspect, who cannot be named because he is a minor, was arrested last Thursday and appeared on Friday. He was charged with attempted murder and he was not asked to plead. His case was remanded to July 15. The seriousness of the charge he is facing prompted the court to remand him to the newly opened Malamulele Place of Safety, as he is still a minor.

The boy stood motionless in the dock, looking oblivious of the serious charges he is facing. He is alleged to have attempted to ritually murder six-year-old Adivhaho Nethengwe of Makonde-Shadani while she was busy making coffee in an outside kitchen on Monday last week.

The screams of the cousin of the young boy alerted the elder sister, who was in the main house and, seeing what was happening, shouted for help from the neighbours. This was enough to save the life of the innocent boy, but he was already bleeding profusely, as he had been cut on the throat. The suspect, who had been recognised by the elder sister as someone living in the vicinity, had run to the nearby bushes by then. Police and emergency personnel were called and the boy was taken to a local hospital, where he is recuperating from a deep gash to the throat.

News of the attempt on the life of the young boy spread like wildfire and the community swiftly assembled and began a manhunt. The police also dispatched many members to the area and this pleased the community as it showed that they were really determined to catch the suspect. Their search paid off on Thursday and the suspect was arrested.

The mother of the child, Florence Nethengwe, has mixed feelings about the arrest. “I am extremely excited at the news of his arrest, but I do not know where to go and stay. He could not have acted alone; somebody must have sent him, and until such time we know exactly who is behind this, we will never be safe,” she said. Nethengwe said it would be unwise for her to go back to Polokwane where she works and leave her children alone at home. “I cannot work while my children are not safe. Whom will I be working for if I come back and find them all dead?” she said.

Nethengwe is making an appeal to whoever might be having a site in the Thohoyandou area or anywhere around Shayandima, Makwarela or nearby villages to assist her.

Magistrate Wilhelm Smith presided over the case while prosecutor Mashudu Nekhumbe prosecuted.