In 2019, Maxwell Muntswu, who is paralyzed and bound to a wheelchair, became another crime statistic in his village. Dambuwo village, situated in Ramukhuba outside Vuwani, is a fairly new section in the area that has already been rocked by theft that hampers construction.
Muntswu (39) lost more than R20 000 worth of building materials that year after thieves cut the fence at the back of his yard and stole everything that he intended to use to construct his new house. The culprits have never been found.
The incident has left him with a burning determination to fight crime at all costs. On Monday, 21 March 2022, Muntswu became an overnight hero in his community when he and a friend of his thwarted a theft in his village.
"My friend and I were on our way from another part of the village at around 01:00 that morning when we noticed a car driving with its lights switched off. It did not need an expert to figure out that something fishy was taking place. We tried to stop the bakkie, but instead of stopping, the culprits sped off at great speed. We gave chase and managed to overtake them and stop in front of their bakkie to block their way," he relayed the incident to the media.
"With no way out, the thieves made off on foot, abandoning the bakkie, which was loaded with building materials. The police reacted quickly and arrived at the scene in no time, and the bakkie was towed to the police's car pound."
This was not the first time Muntswu put his own life on the line. In 2017, he became the shield that saved his wife and children's lives when armed robbers pumped 16 bullets into his body. He spent nearly two years in hospital and recovered, but he will be paralysed and wheelchair bound because of it for the rest of his life.
As a victim of crime, Muntswu has adopted a "no-nonsense" stand against crime and says he will do everything in his power to stop it from happening.
The local traditional leader, Chief Nemulalo Ramukhuba, praised Muntswu and his friend's heroic deeds and called on all his subjects to follow suit but to also be vigilant in the face of crime. "It is very painful to see my subjects suffer at the hands of criminals. These people save the little they get in order to put a roof over their heads, but when thieves strike, they take whatever they can lay their hands on. My people are left helpless as a result. Our area was better off when we had patrollers at night. The moment these thieves realise that no-one is looking, they take over. We cannot just sit by and watch with folded arms. We will sit down as a community and come up with a plan to address this matter," Ramukhuba said.