Child No 8 found in grave
2008-04-08 21:09
Walter Ka Nkosi & Tshwarelo eseng Mogakane
Modimolle - Two weeks after an alleged child rapist and serial killer was acquitted in court, a five-year-old girl has been found buried in a shallow grave.
Maria Mafora became the eighth child to be found murdered in Phagamang village near Modimolle in Limpopo in the past four years.
Mafora went missing on Saturday morning while playing with her friends.
"Her parents and others went out looking for her, but to no avail, so they reported the matter to the police," said Limpopo police spokesperson Motlafela Mojapelo on Tuesday.
He said police started an around-the-clock search and found her body on Monday morning with the help of sniffer dogs.
Offering R250 000 reward
Mojapelo said forensic experts and additional investigators were brought in to help with the investigation.
Police are offering a R250 000 reward for information that will lead to a successful prosecution.
Mojapelo said police would question the 33-year-old who was released last month.
The suspect had been arrested on January 31, but was acquitted on nine charges of rape and 10 of murder when the State withdrew charges against him because DNA samples taken from previous crime scenes did not match his.
Before Mafora's murder, seven children had been killed and buried in shallow graves in Phagamang, while three are still missing.
- African Eye