Durban — A man will appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Monday (today) in connection with the murder and rape of 6-year-old Cato Manor resident Senamile Sphengane.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Cato Manor SAPS detectives had arrested the man on Friday night and charged him with murder and rape.
The family were left heartbroken when Senamile was found in a bush near Wiggins Sports Ground on Monday last week.
Police spokesperson Colonel Nqobile Gwala said they had noticed strangulation marks on the little girl’s bloodied body. A post-mortem will reveal the cause of death.
After reporting the case to the Cato Manor police station, the family of the little girl complained that the police were not responding to the matter with any urgency.
Sbusisiwe Mnduna, the dead girl’s aunt, said the suspect would not have had enough time to dump the body if the police had acted more swiftly. Mnduna also said she believed the suspect responsible for the girl’s death was a local resident.
“Senamile was on the sofa with a relative and she was playing games on a cellphone. One of the relatives said she went away with another girl her age.
“The relative who was in the house with her said she did not know who the child was, so it was hard to try to trace them,” said Mnduna.
Both Mnduna and Senamile’s mother – Smangele Sphengane – were away when the incident occurred, and upon their return, they immediately noticed the child was missing.
“We asked those who were there, and they said she had left with another child. It was at that moment that we began searching – without success,” said Mnduna.
The search of the neighbourhood began at about 9pm on Sunday night, and after two hours the family decided to escalate the issue to the police.
Mnduna said police had not been helpful, as they had told her and the family to go back and search the area again, saying they might have missed her.
Mnduna said Sphengane was distraught and urged people to assist them financially. Funeral arrangements were still being made.
Daily News