‘Show killer arsonist no mercy’
THE FAMILIES of the two victims, one of whom was only four years old, who died following a house fire in Gong Gong last year, have called on the Northern Cape High Court not to show any mercy when sentencing the 27-year-old woman who started the fire.
Elisa Tsilo was found guilty on two counts of murder, arson and assault yesterday, after she set fire to the house belonging to Lena Louw on December 23 last year.
Tsilo’s boyfriend, Victor Louw, and a four-year-old child, Tshepang Mohale, who was visiting at the time, were pulled out of the flames but succumbed to their injuries at Kimberley Hospital on Christmas Eve.
Tsilo was also found guilty of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm after her own son was also burnt in the incident. The boy survived.
The incident occurred at Victor’s mother’s house, Lena Louw, which she shared with her son and Tsilo, along with the accused’s son, in Gong Gong, outside Barkly West.
Evidence presented in court by the mother of four-year-old Tshepang, Elizabeth Mohale, was that she went to Louw’s house to pay back some money she had lent. Tshepang had gone with her.
A clearly devastated Mohale, who was tearful and spoke with difficulty yesterday, said that she never imagined the day would end on such a tragic note.
“I lost my child in such a tragic manner and the pain of the incident is still very raw. My child had his entire future ahead of him but now he is gone,” she said, crying.
Family members stated that Mohale cried about the loss of her son every day. They said they hoped the accused would be locked away for a long time.
Victor’s mother, Louw, indicated that she too had been deeply hurt by the incident.
“This is very painful for me. I not only lost my home and all my belongings in the fire but also my son, who supported me,” she said.
Louw, who is currently taking care of Tsilo’s son, said that she still does not know what drove the accused to set the house alight.
“There were no problems between myself and the accused. She and my son were dating and I welcomed her and her child into my house. I am currently staying in the same burnt house with her child. I cannot turn the child away or hold him responsible for the actions of his mother. I do not understand what pushed the accused to carry out such an act.”
According to Tsilo’s testimony, the blaze started when a container of petrol was tipped over during a scuffle between her and Victor.
She said that they were arguing because Victor had asked her for money to buy drugs.
According to Tsilo,
Victor became angry when she told him she had no money and they fought. The container of petrol, which was standing in the living room, was tipped over during the incident. She said Victor went to the kitchen and the gas, from the gas refrigerator, ignited the blaze.
Louw and Mohale said earlier in the trial that they had seen Tsilo entering the house with petrol. They, however, stated that they did not see Tsilo douse the deceased, who was lying in the bedroom, with the petrol.
Acting Judge Janine Snyders, in her judgment, said that the evidence presented by Louw and Mohale showed that Tsilo set the house on fire.
Snyders said that there was, however, no evidence that the accused bought the petrol with the intent to carry out the crime.
“The State could not argue that the accused bought the petrol with the intent to do the crime as petrol was used in the home,” she said.
Snyders said that despite the accused’s defence, which stated that the blaze was started in the kitchen, evidence presented by the police indicated otherwise.
“The officer who testified, said that if the blaze was caused by the refrigerator, the plastic on the refrigerator would have peeled off. The front of the refrigerator was not burnt. The evidence from the officer was that the blaze started in the bedroom.”
Snyders said that although the accused was aware that there were other people present in the house, she still carried out her plan.
“The doctor who conducted the J88 on the child of the accused said the child suffered superficial wounds to his fingers. The accused also suffered superficial injuries to her legs. The accused knew there were other people inside the house and there was a possibility they could get burnt. Her own son was even inside the room where the deceased was,” Snyders said.
The matter was postponed to November for sentencing.