Child slain in horror attack on street

AN MTHATHA family watched in horror as their nine-year-old boy’s head was smashed into the road and he was stabbed repeatedly with a large knife.

Alungile Thulani was racing wire toy cars with friends on Monday afternoon when he was attacked.

The attack, witnessed by the boy’s brother Amila, 11, and other children, took place in Zimbane Valley.

A 25-year-old man, Vuyo Nyakombi, has been arrested on a charge of murder. Alungile was in Grade 2 at Zimbane Valley Primary school.

“He first shared a joke with us, but he quickly became aggressive and ran amok. We ran away in fear and Alungile was crying for help. This now scares me at night when I think about it,” Amila told the Dispatch.

His distraught parents, Sicelo Mamane and Nonkululeko Thulani, said: “Our boy had a fighting spirit. He did not want to die and that gave us hope, but unfortunately about an hour later he succumbed to the injuries.

“One stab pierced his heart. Another entered from the chest to his back and his skull was fractured.”

The parents were about 300m away in Bhongweni village when they heard the screams.

They were running towards the children when they saw the man lift their son in the air.

“We saw this man lifting my son and bashing his head on the road and lift him up again with one hand and stab him several times with my child screaming and kicking him,” said Nonkululeko. By the time they arrived, his motionless little body was lying in a pool of blood and the man was running away.

The father and other residents gave chase while Nonkululeko and some of her neighbours rushed Alungile to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital, where he died.

Mthatha police spokeswoman Captain Dineo Koena said Nyakombi was arrested the same day near the corner of Tutor Ndamase and Errol Spring avenues at the BT Ngebs Mall about 4km from the crime scene.

“It is alleged that the suspect approached a group of boys who were playing next to the road at Bhongweni village and started stabbing the boy. It is further alleged an alarm was raised and the community chased the suspect. He fled into a nearby forest and when seeing he was cornered, fled towards town but was arrested by police before he could enter the town,” said Koena.

The bail hearing was set for April 25. Until then the accused remains in custody. —