Soweto residents are demanding justice and the arrest of a suspect after the rape and murder of a six-year-old girl, Amantle Samane, on Monday.
Residents took to the streets on Wednesday morning. In the scorching heat, a group marched to Amantle’s family home and then to Orlando police station.
They are demanding that police arrest a Mozambican man who allegedly disappeared after the brutal incident on Monday.
A group, mainly women, sang at the police station. Some of the residents held placards saying: “Hang the rapist. Justice for Amantle. She was only six years old. Law without justice is a wound without a cure.”
One of the women, who didn’t want to be named, said the incident was painful and she had decided to support Amantle’s family. She said children were no longer safe. “This is painful. I don’t want to talk about it. This is very emotional,” she said.
A community member who was among the crowd, Rhulani Hlaisi, said parents were panicking and accused the police of defending the criminals.
“Our children are not safe here. Very soon we will see him walking freely on the streets here. As South Africans, we have to stand and be one thing,” he said.
He said police were struggling to find the man they accused. “The way they are operating I don’t see the work that they are doing,” he said.
Gauteng police released a picture of the suspect on Tuesday afternoon.
Lt-Col Mavela Masondo confirmed that eight people who were arrested in the morning were not related to the incident but were arrested on suspicion of being in the country illegally.
“Our detectives have been working tirelessly to find the suspect in this case. For now, we can confirm that the same person who offered to assist in the investigation is our suspect,” he said.
He added that the suspect is the only person they are looking for in the matter.
Phathu Luvhengo
www.timeslive.co.za
