The death of yet another couple shocked local residents the past week. A young man allegedly poisoned his girlfriend before hanging himself from the rafters of his room at Dzwerani Mirenzheni, near Thohoyandou, on Sunday at around 17:00.
The deceased were identified as 17-year-old Ondwela Mulelu from Khwekhwe and 24-year-old Orinea Mahangwane from Dzwerani. Vhembe SAPS's communications officer, W/O Vuledzani Dathi, said that when the police arrived at the scene, Ondwela was found dead, lying on the bed. She had no visible injuries, but foam was frothing from her mouth, and the police found an empty sheet of tablets and traditional medicine. In the same one-room house, Orinea was hanging from a plastic rope tied to the rafters, with his hands tied behind his back.
What exactly had transpired there and led to the couple's death is not certain yet, but a case of gender-based violence is suspected. Two inquest dockets were opened and are being investigated by the Vuwani SAPS.
According to inside information provided to this newspaper, Ondwela, who was in Grade 11, went to Dzwerani after the school closed for the October holidays. She was supposed to return home again on Monday, 9 October, before the school reopened the following day.
Her aunt, Ms Mpho Mulelu, said the couple visited her place on Tuesday, 26 September, and spent a long time with her without any sign that they were experiencing conflict. She said she had last seen Ondwela early on the morning of the incident (Sunday), at around 06:00, when the girl had walked past Mulelu's house and told her she was on her way to visit someone.
"She did not say where she was going, only that she would come back. It was late in the afternoon, around 18:30, when I received the bad news of her death and rushed to the scene. It still feels like a nightmare to me. The painful part of it is that the couple leaves behind a six-month-old baby who will grow up without parents. We do not have the means to cope with this situation. My niece was a quiet person who kept everything to herself, never sharing her problems with anyone. In July this year, Orinea forcibly took the baby away, but Ondwela did not tell any of the family members what they were fighting about. Her death has left us with so many unanswered questions," she said.
The local Madala/Mirenzheni civic chairperson, Mr Shumani Nekhavhambe, said the whole village had been plunged into deep mourning after the two deaths. "This is a sad moment for us all. Losing two young people at once is a terrible blow. I was one of the first to arrive at the scene, and it was horrible. The girl was lying on the bed, semi-naked, with foam in the mouth, like she had been poisoned, while the boyfriend was hanging from the rafters. His hands were handcuffed behind him, which leaves the question as to how he managed to hang himself. There was a note too, but the police took it, and we don't know what it said. This is a very unfortunate thing to have happened here, with them both still being so young. Couples should seek help when they experience trouble, before things get out of hand," he said.