Our village is not a dumping site for bodies

The recent discovery of a body in the bushes at Khalavha outside Siloam has raised concerns and angered the local community. The body, later identified as that of Mr Tshifhiwa Mushweu of Vhutuwangadzebu in Dzanani, was discovered by a passerby in bushes on Tuesday, 2 April at about 18:35. He went missing on Sunday, 31 March, after receiving a call from an unknown person.

Initially, the body could not be identified as no one knew him. The discovery has raised eyebrows and concerns as criminals seem to have taken over the area and use it as a dumping ground for corpses. The local Khalavha Civic leader, Mr Kenneth Sigudu, said the discovery had come as a shock to the community.

“This is a peaceful community with only common minimal crimes like theft of fruits like avocados. Violent crimes like this one are unheard of, and we are very shocked about this incident. It is clear that the man was killed somewhere and dumped here. He had a belt around his neck, which shows they used it while carrying him. As a community, we are concerned that criminals would commit their crimes somewhere else and dump their victims here. Our village is not a dumping site for dead people. This paints a bad name on our village. Our prayer is that [the] police work hard and trace whoever did this heinous crime,” he said.

The Mushweu family spokesperson, Mr Raymond Mugwena, confirmed the body was that of their family member, Tshifhiwa Mushweu.

“Our hearts are bleeding, looking at the way he was killed; it was very gruesome. He was killed like an animal and thrown into bushes. The brutality shown by the killers is unheard of. What happened tore our hearts. As a family, we have decided to lay him to rest on Saturday, 13 April at the local Vhutuwangadzebu graveyard,” he said.

Limpopo police spokesperson Col Malesela Ledwaba confirmed that a body was discovered at the village. “Police were summoned to the scene after the body was found in bushes in the area. The body had several bullet wounds, the skull was severely damaged, and his face was also swollen. Two empty cartridges were also found next to the body. We have since opened a murder case, and investigations are ongoing,” he said.

Ledwaba called on members of the community to assist with information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects to contact the investigating officer Sgt Godwell Bongani Ndobe on 066 253 3977 or 015 973 5200.

Date:12 April 2024

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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