Manguzi – A KwaZulu-Natal family is reeling in shock after a man known to them allegedly entered their house while they were out running errands and killed their three children, who were fast asleep. The gruesome discovery has sent shockwaves through the village of Lulwane in Manguzi, northern KwaZulu-Natal.
At the time of the attack, the parents had gone out at night, leaving the children sleeping. When family members came back and tried to wake them, they walked into a scene of unimaginable violence.
According to Smanga Khumalo, a family member, he and one of the children’s mothers made the gruesome discovery when they entered the room where they had left the children sleeping.
The mother was inconsolable, he said. “We called for the kids to open the door and were surprised when nobody answered. We then pushed the door open, and their mother then lit a candle. This is when we saw the children lying on the floor in a pool of blood. The elder child had a gaping wound on her neck and several wounds on her body,” he said.
Khumalo added that the other two children had severe stabbing wounds on their bodies. He said that since the incident happened, the children’s mother has been battling to eat or sleep. “The sad part is that the person who committed this terrible act is known to the family.
“We are told by other community members that after he killed the kids, he said he was teaching their father a lesson. We do not know what their dispute is, but he shouldn’t have avenged it on innocent children,” said Khumalo.
The three siblings have been named as Kwanele, Ayabonga and Amanda. Kwanele was a pupil at Thongwana High School, while Ayabonga attended Mengu Primary School. Amanda, who was living with disabilities, never attended school.
Local councillor Senzo Mkhumbuzi said the community was deeply disturbed by the crime and called for harsh punishment for the killer.
“This is shocking and animal-like behaviour, which should not be tolerated. These were innocent kids who had done nothing wrong. We want the perpetrator to feel the full force of the law,” he said.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said a suspect had been arrested after the children were “butchered to death” with a bush knife.
“Reports indicate that the mother of the children was out running errands on her small business, and when she went home, she found her three children aged seven, nine, and 15 butchered to death.
“Police were summoned to the scene and investigations began. On Sunday morning, the suspect was arrested and he appeared in the Emanguzi magistrate’s court on Monday.”
Police believe a bush knife was used in the attack, which left the children with deep wounds to their necks and bodies.
The man, who is known to the family according to relatives, is expected back in the Emanguzi Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday. He faces multiple charges relating to the murders of the three children.
As court proceedings begin, the family is struggling to come to terms with the loss of three young lives taken in such a brutal way. Khumalo says the children’s mother is shattered and has not been able to eat or sleep since the killings, while community members remain fearful and angry that a dispute between adults could end in the murder of children.
The case has once again highlighted the vulnerability of children within their own homes and the deadly consequences of personal conflicts spilling over into violence.
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