A 17-year-old boy has been arrested for the murder of school girl Deveney Nel from Grabouw.
The teen was nabbed by detectives from the Serious Violent Crime Unit on Friday just before midnight, and will make his first appearance in court today.
It has also been revealed that the he lives in a neighbouring town and not in the small dorpie of Caledon.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa said that following an extensive investigation into the discovery of 16-year-old Deveney’s body, Serious Violent Crimes detectives made a breakthrough.
Potelwa says: “The 17-year-old suspect was arrested by the detectives on Friday evening and charged with murder. He is expected to appear in the Caledon Magistrate’s Court on Monday.“
Deveney disappeared on the day her school, Hoërskool Overberg in Caledon, hosted a sports day nearly two weeks ago. Her mother reported her missing when she did not pitch up for her transport home.
It is believed that the Grade 10 learner was stabbed to death and her body hidden in the school’s locked storeroom.
A source revealed that the girl’s ribbon and her cellphone were found on the back of a bakkie of a teacher at her school. The male teacher who found the items handed it over to police.
The name of the teen suspect is known to the Daily Voice, but cannot be made public, due to him being a minor.
However, it’s believed that he and Deveney had known each other for years.
Amid heightened fears, Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond has assured learners and parents that the school has always been considered a safe environment.
She says: “In terms of our safe schools statistics, they have not reported any safety incidents in the past five years, which also includes no reports of crime or burglary and vandalism.
“The school has on-site security [prior to incident], paid for by the school.”
Hammond says the department will continue to support the school and learners by providing necessary counselling.
She says: “The fear experienced by the learners is natural. This was a horrific incident.”
She adds that while the school itself has on-site security, and police have also been present at the premises, schools are not obligated to have security cameras
Hammond says: “It is an additional security measure paid for by the school.
“While we would encourage schools to implement as many practical and affordable security measures as possible, it must also be recognised that these measures come at a cost to the school and are not always affordable or practical in implementation.”
WCED MEC David Maynier says Deveney’s family and her school has asked for privacy to grieve, adding: “This devastating incident has dealt a great blow to the school community.
“Our department will continue to provide additional support to the school in the coming week.”
Tracy-Lynn Ruiters
www.dailyvoice.co.za
