Doreen Mokgolo
On Saturday night two teenagers were kidnapped by an old man who offered them a lift while they were on their way home from a dance challenge in Stinkwater, north of Tshwane.
It is alleged they were drugged and taken to an informal settlement in Winterveld, 20km from their homes, a suspected initiation school.
One of the victims, 16-year-old Nkosinathi Ncobo, said that he woke up in the middle of the night in a shack with eight boys who seemed drugged and disorientated.
“When I called them out to find out what was happening none of them were responsive.
“The old man told us that we should relax and not be scared, he would not harm us,” he said
But Ncobo, 16, didn’t believe him. He told Scrolla.Africa that he feared for his life because he had heard stories of boys who were kidnapped and forced to go to initiation schools.
“My family doesn’t believe in initiation schools and they warned me against it.”
He and his friend managed to escape on foot on Sunday night. They were found running for their lives along the Molefe Makinta Highway in the early hours of Monday morning.
His mother, Zanele Ngcobo, said they spent Sunday afternoon searching initiation schools in the area with no success.
“I was frustrated as to what could have happened to my son. All his friends told us that they last saw him on Saturday afternoon.
“With every initiation school we visited without finding him, I feared for the worst,” she said.
While driving along the Molefe Makinta Highway she saw two boys running along the road and as they got closer, she was able to identify her son.
She said the boys were disorientated and terrified, with wounds on their bodies.
Temba police spokesperson Sgt Herman Moremi confirmed that they are investigating a case of kidnapping.
“Investigations are underway and the suspects are yet to be arrested,” he said.
