Security guard ‘butchered like a dog’ at primary school

Slain man was looking forward to retirement

The family of a Limpopo school guard who was killed on duty says he was “butchered like a dog”.

The body Malala Monama, 59, was found stashed in a refuse bin inside a grade 3 classroom at Gotshetsheng Primary School in Moganyaka village near Marble Hall with blood all over the room.

Monama’s sister, Margaret Mahlangu, said: “They killed him like a dog, he was strangled with a wire... and butchered with a panga.”

“I went to clean his blood on the wall and floor, the killers were heartless.”

She described her brother as a quiet and disciplined person who was looking forward to retiring next year.

“What we know is that there two warring teacher factions in the school. We want the police to arrest my brother’s killers.”

Police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said a murder case had been opened and police were investigating.

“The windows of the school’s main office... were broken. The motive is unknown and no arrests have been made,” Ngoepe said yesterday.

The chairperson of the school governing body (SGB) Julia Manaswe told Sowetan the murder could be linked to the fighting factions in the school.

“There is a probe going on regarding missing school funds and allegations of corruption. We suspect whoever broke into the school was looking for a cheque book and documents relating to the investigations,” she said.

Manaswe said she was called by a resident who saw the windows at the school wide open.

She said the suspects used a grinder to gain access through the burglar door.

“The guard could have heard the noise and interrupted the crime in progress. There was a new photocopy machine and it was not stolen, only documents were taken,” Manaswe said.

She said Monama had worked at the school for the past 12 years.

Limpopo department of education spokesperson Sam Makondo said: “We express our deepest condolences to the family and also appeal to the police to find those who behind the incident. We also call on members of the community to work with the police in finding the killers.”

Makondo said the investigation into the school’s finances was ongoing.