Elmon Tshikhudo
Death has struck the Magogona family a second time, one month after intruders killed Norah Magogona, 53, in a house robbery.
This time it was her husband, Phanuel, 56, who died of his injuries in hospital on Saturday, 14 May. Both had been hacked with a hand hoe.
The family from Phiphidi, outside Thohoyandou, was attacked on Good Friday by unknown assailants.
It’s believed that the attackers were locals who knew about Phanuel Magogona’s annual bonus. An undisclosed amount of cash was taken during the attack.
The incident shocked the whole village of Phiphidi, and nearby villages.
All the time the family thought Phanuel would recover and tell what transpired on that fateful day.
Unfortunately, he passed on at the Polokwane MediClinic.
This was a double blow to the family, losing parents in the most brutal way and within a short space of each other.
The dead man’s sister, Ivy Marandela, said the family is torn apart as a result of the tragedy.
“Our hearts are in pain and what is adding to this pain is the fact that my brother gave us names of people who attacked him when he could speak. We passed on the names to the police but they did not take us seriously.
“This is heartbreaking and my brother is now dead with the information,” she said.
Marandela said the family desperately wanted the killers to be arrested.
“My brother and his wife were butchered like animals. There was blood everywhere and we were forced to burn the beds and blankets because of the blood.
“We would like to know why they were killed but instead police seem reluctant to give that information out. We will never find closure in this matter if the killers are not brought to book.”
