Daughter’s ‘hijack death still hurts’
Mom killed while picking up child at Soweto school
The mother of a pregnant Soweto woman who was killed during a hijacking two years ago is still battling to come to terms with her daughter’s murder.
Victoria Ramohai whose daughter, Charlotte was shot and killed while picking up her 14-year-old daughter, Masabata, from school in 2015, spoke to Sowetan about her apprehension ahead of next week’s judgment against Charlotte’s alleged killers .
Two men, Mlungisi Twala and Alex Ngobeni, face murder charges in the South Gauteng High Court sitting in Palm Ridge. The pair also face charges of robbery with aggravated circumstances, unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition as well as kidnapping.
Charlotte was killed in the presence of her nine-year-old son, Thato, who was in the car when the two armed men allegedly hijacked it.
Her car was found abandoned in Dobsonville Extension 3 several hours later.
Yesterday, Victoria said the family has been eagerly awaiting the conclusion of the case and believe that justice will be served on those responsible for killing her daughter.
“We know that it’s not going to bring her back, but we have faith that those who killed her will be judged accordingly,” Victoria said.
She said the past two years have been particularly hard on Thato and Masabata as they were left traumatised by the incident.
“Thato misses his mother a lot. He and his sister frequently ask their father to take them to their mother’s grave so they can feel closer to her.
“Their father makes sure that he supports them the best way he can because he is aware of the big hole she left in their lives,” Victoria said.
Charlotte was 33 years at the time of her murder. Her unborn child would have been two years old now.
“It was a big blow to us. They took away two members of our family, one of whom we did not get a chance to meet,” said an emotional Victoria.
At the time of her shooting,Charlotte had just picked up her daughter Masabata.
As they took to the road, they were allegedly confronted by two men with guns.
She was shot and thrown out of the vehicle along with her children. She died at the scene.
“We have been going to court for the past two years. It’s been difficult but we wanted to see if we would get justice for our child.”
Both Twala and Ngobeni also faced charges in a separate matter in connection with a hijacking and murder of a Soweto man.
This incident took place ten days after Ramohai’s attack and murder .
‘‘ It was a blow. They took the lives of two of our relatives