Qacha’sNek, Aug. 26 — A man in his early thirties was killed in Whitehill in the early hours of Wednesday after an altercation allegedly turned violent.
Speaking to the Agency on Wednesday, Ha Mapote councillor Fusi Khamali, a paternal cousin of the deceased, said he received news of the incident from the deceased’s roommate.
Khamali said the deceased had travelled to Ha Mphahama after he sent him there and returned home intoxicated, before an altercation allegedly broke out between him and another man.“I was informed they had an altercation with the suspect, although I don’t know what the fight was about. The fight led to the suspect hitting him twice on the chest with a beer bottle, which resulted in him falling down,” he said.
Khamali said police were called and the deceased was rushed to Machabeng Government Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
He added that the deceased had been living with asthma. “This has scared us a lot to learn of his demise and that he was killed. He had been living with his condition and just like that, he is no more. It is very heartbreaking. We are yet to find out what happened,” he said.
Whitehill councillor Rorisang Marotholi said he only learnt of the incident in the morning and did not know what sparked the dispute.
He expressed concern over the loss of young lives in the community, saying it was becoming increasingly common to bury young people.“Of late, we bury youth, and it is very painful. It shouldn’t be happening,” Marotholi said.
He urged local leaders, including chiefs and councillors, as well as church leaders, to work together to address violence and prevent further loss of life.
Qacha’s Nek Police boss, Senior Inspector Themba Tshabalala confirmed the case but said he could not give further details because the suspect had not yet been remanded.
The suspect, reportedly from Ha Noosi, is in Qacha’s Nek police custody.
The deceased was the only child in his family and leaves behind a wife and a young child in reception class.
The case is the second murder reported at Qacha’s Nek Police Station this week, adding to growing concern over violence in the district.
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