What was meant to mark the start of the Easter weekend turned into a night of horror when a 79-year-old man was stabbed to death in an alleged love-triangle dispute at a village shebeen in Tovhowani Mulenzhe, outside Malamulele.
Residents were left in disbelief after Mr Hasani Daniel Bilankulu was fatally stabbed during a violent altercation in the early hours of Thursday, 2 April. Thohoyandou police have since arrested a 52-year-old man in connection with the killing, which reportedly occurred at about 01:30 outside a local shebeen where the deceased had been drinking sorghum beer.
According to Vhembe SAPS spokesperson Captain Vuledzani Dathi, police responded to a complaint from the village and found that a fight had broken out between the suspect and the deceased.
“It is alleged that patrons inside the shebeen heard a commotion and, upon going outside, found the two men engaged in a physical confrontation. The deceased sustained a stab wound to the right arm, and an Okapi knife believed to have been used in the attack was recovered at the scene,” said Dathi.
Emergency Medical Services personnel declared the elderly man dead at the scene. His body was later transported to a government mortuary for a post-mortem examination.
The suspect, who also sustained chest injuries during the altercation, was taken to Malamulele Hospital and remains under police guard.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the fatal confrontation may have been fuelled by a romantic dispute, with both the suspect and the deceased allegedly involved with the same woman.
Local traditional leader Vhamusanda Vholanga Langa Ramovha declined to comment, saying it was too early to provide a detailed statement.
“I am not in a position to say anything now. As we speak, I am still at work here at Turf, but I am rushing back home to get first-hand information. We will sit with my council and compile a full report, which will be handed over to our senior traditional leader, Thovhele Nkhaneni Ramovha, as per protocol. He will then guide us on when to issue an official statement. For now, please bear with us,” he said.
The suspect is expected to appear in the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court once he is discharged from hospital.