Man to appear in court on teenage girl murder case

According to the police spokesperson, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi, the girl was last seen on Wednesday.

A 19-year-old man will appear in the Kabokweni Magistrate Court on Wednesday in connection with the murder of a teenage girl.

This after the body of the 14-year-old was discovered in a pit latrine in Mpumalanga.

According to the police spokesperson, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi, the girl was last seen on Wednesday.

“The family only realised that something bad might have happened to her the next day after they received threatening messages via cellphone demanding a ransom in exchange for her release,” said Hlathi on Tuesday.

The family reported the matter to the police, who then opened a case of kidnapping and an investigation began.

The girl's body was discovered by a family member inside a pit toilet at her residence over the weekend.

"The police worked tirelessly in search of her killers and made a breakthrough today by arresting a suspect, who has been fingered in the case," said Hlathi.

It is believed that the girl may have been drugged before she was killed. However, a post-mortem will be conducted to determine the cause of death.

“Police cannot rule out a possibility of adding more charges upon the suspect,” said Hlathi. 

(With Inputs from South African Government Press Release)