By Buziwe Nocuze
The arrest of a suspect in connection with the kidnapping of an eight-year-old boy in Nyanga township, Cape Town, will finally give the family the answers they have been searching for.
Lukhololwam Mkontwana was kidnapped in September 2022 while he was playing with other kids next to his home.
The kidnappers demanded a ransom of R100,000 which the family simply couldn’t pay as his mother was working as a junior chef at the time.
His body was found six days after he was kidnapped, with his hands tied behind him and his face covered with sellotape.
A family member said hearing about the arrest has given them hope of finding the reasons behind the kidnapping and murder of an innocent child.
“We are grateful to the detectives who made a breakthrough in this case. We would have given up, especially after nothing came up in the entire 2023,” said a family member.
“We want to know what an innocent child did to them. He didn’t deserve to die and he still had a lot to look forward to, but they decided to cut his life short.”
Nyanga Community Policing Forum secretary, Dumisani Qwebe, applauded the good work that led to the arrest of the suspect.
“I was so shocked to hear that the suspect is one of the deceased’s neighbours. If it is true then we have become a sick society that puts money before everything,” he said.
“The first person to come to your house when you are having a problem is your neighbour. How are we going to trust them if they are guilty of committing such a crime? It is a shame. The community will be supporting the family when they go to court.”
Western Cape Saps spokesperson, Captain FC van Wyk, confirmed the arrest of a suspect charged with kidnapping.
He said that other suspects still have to be found.
Pictured above: Eight-year-old Lukhololwam Mkontwana was kidnapped and brutally murdered by kidnappers.
Image source: Supplied
