The disappearance of four year old Mmaonyana Mozilikazi is steadily stoking tempers among the 2,000 villagers of Moletemane whose nine months of investigations have yielded no conclusion.
Instead, rumour is rife in the village near Tsetsejwe in Bobirwa that the child may have fallen prey to child molesters, or otherwise, ritual murder, perhaps across the border in South Africa.
Interviewed by Sunday Standard, Cry Molatlhegi, the chairman of the search team, says “the Moletemane residents want fresh investigation into the disappearance of the child”.
He demands that all the investigating detectives should be called again for the case.
“We no not want blood shed in our village. That is why we formed a search team so that there should be law and order here,” he announced.
Molathegi said they decided to lodge their complaints with the police commissioner on how his men were conducting the investigations.
He said “as residents of Moletemane we want our innocent child and only that will makes us happy”.
He added that the mother of the child has sleepless nights due to her missing child.
I am hopeful that sooner rather than later the child will be found.
Kgosi Malema says “I am aware that a child is missing in Moletemane and I addressed the residents regarding the matter”.
“The main reason why I addressed the villagers about the issue was the fact that I wanted to give the police to fully investigate the matter without any disturbance and to cool down the high tempers that were flying within the village and that was very dangerous” he says.
He admits that even though he addressed the residents, tension is slowly rising.
He says it will be unfortunate if the villager’s riot “but I hope that the police have thoroughly done their homework,” he adds.
He suspects that the child might have being murdered. He asks Moletemane residents not to take the law into their own hands.
He appeals to the public that they should always look after children to avoid such kind of disturbing incident.
Senior superintendent, Takongwa Mazuduma of Selebi-Phikwe Police Station says: “The investigations are complete and the docket has being submitted to the directorate of public prosecution”.
He says three people have being charged. One man and two women are out on bail.
He said though the investigation were complex, the suspects will be charged with murder even though the body or her remains have not been recovered.
The case is before the magistrates’ court, so I do not want to discuss the case in the press, said the officer.
He says there will be no any fresh investigations. “If there is fresh information regarding the case, then the police will conduct investigations to add on what they have already done,” says Mazuduma.
He wants any that could point out the whereabouts of the child.
