Suspect expected in court for setting a young woman alight

A Mpumalanga family wants justice after a 22-year-old woman was allegedly set alight by her boyfriend in Caroline, Mpumalanga.

It is alleged that the victim was doused with a flammable liquid before she was set alight.

34-year-old Innocent Maseko is expected to appear in the Carolina Magistrate’s Court for a bail application. He was charged with attempted murder.

The victim’s older sister, Nomcebo Ngobeni says, “Mbali has been in an abusive relationship for a long time. They have been staying together and on that day, the guy was demanding food and money from Mbali and she said she did not have anything. The guy poured petrol on her and set her on fire. The neighbour saw everything and rescued Mbali. We are not okay; we want justice; we want him to go to jail for a very long time. We will be hurt if we can see him walking around the streets.”

The victim’s mother, Sibongile Ngobeni, says she is hurt that her daughter has been injured and says her daughter was introduced to drugs by the suspect.

“I am so hurt about Mbali because I have tried several times to get her out of drugs and she was introduced by the man to drugs. I even sent her to rehab, but he took her back to using drugs. Now setting her alight, he was abusing her. I would sometimes fetch her from his place as they were fighting,” adds the victim’s mother.

In another incident in the province this month, a woman was stabbed with a sharp object at Vosman in Emalahleni, allegedly by her brother-in-law.

“We condemn this in the strongest possible terms but we also at the same time welcome the work the police have done so far. We want them to investigate this case as all GBV cases must be investigated so that the actual perpetrators are convicted and punished accordingly. That is the only way we can make a serious impact against GBV in the province – especially as we conclude Women’s Month,” says the spokesperson of the Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison, Moeti Mmusi.

The victim is currently fighting for her life in the Witbank Tertiary Hospital in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga.

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