Body found in Springfield flatlet

Port Elizabeth police have launched an investigation into the murder of a young man whose bloodstained body was found in his new Springfield flatlet early on Monday, just days after arriving in the city to start a new job.

The body of Wilson Bongani Chiwa, 26, was found covered in blood on the floor next to his bed at about 8am.

While the motive for the murder remains unclear, police said the possibility of a robbery could not be ruled out.

Chiwa moved to Port Elizabeth last week from Johannesburg to take up a job as a senior property officer at Vodacom’s regional offices.

On Friday afternoon, Chiwa moved into a ground floor flatlet in the @Fig Tree flats in Glenconder Crescent, Springfield, which borders the William Moffett Expressway.

The alarm was first raised at about 7.40am when another tenant, who was leaving for work, spotted the flatlet’s front door open and blood on the bedroom curtains.

The bedroom, which has sliding doors, faces the car park and forms part of the same complex that borders neighbouring car dealership, Moffett on Main Pre-Owned.

The three-storey block of flats has 11 units and is surrounded by an electric fence.

The landlord, who declined to be named, was on the scene on Monday and said that he was alerted when a tenant sent him a picture of the blood on the curtains of the flatlet.

The landlord contacted Moffett on Main Pre-Owned employee Robert Pfister and asked him to investigate.

“I was at work already and took two guys with me and walked over to the flatlet.

“The front door was open but because he had only recently moved in, he had no furniture with him,” Pfister said.

“I walked into the flatlet and the bedroom door was slightly open.

“I tried to push it open more with a baton but it was blocked by bedding that had been pushed up against it.”

Pfister said that he managed to peek into the room and saw that it was covered in blood.

“It had been ransacked and there was blood everywhere. I went and contacted the police.”

Pfister said Chiwa had been there on Thursday to view the flatlet before moving in on Friday evening.

“He signed the lease agreements and basically came to the flatlet with only two bags.”

Asked if any neighbours had reported hearing anything, Pfister said that he had asked a few of the tenants, who said they had heard nothing.

Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Alwin Labans said police found Chiwa’s body lying next to the bed.

Bloody handprints and blood splatter markings were seen on the bedroom curtains facing the parking area.

“It is unclear what the motive was as he had recently moved in and did not have a lot of possessions with him,” Labans said.

“Nothing appears to have been stolen.

“However, we can only determine this once detectives consult the family.

“It appears there was a scuffle of sorts and he [Chiwa] was hit on the back of the head with what appears to have been a heavy object.”

Labans said the cause of death would only be established once a postmortem was concluded.

“According to medics who were on the scene, the time of death is believed to be about 1am,” he said.

“The murder weapon was not found on the scene.”

Asked if there were signs of forced entry, Labans said both the bedroom sliding door and the front door were found unlocked.

‘It had been ransacked and there was blood [all over]. I went out and we contacted the police’ Robert Pfister

MOFFETT ON MAIN PRE-OWNED EMPLOYEE