A poster shows cousins Yonelisa, 2, and Zandile Mali, 3, who went missing on Saturday and were found dead on Tuesday. Photo: Antoine de Ras
In a country where several rapes are said to occur every minute, in a township where violence is commonplace, this was a crime that shocked the entire community of Diepsloot, South Africa, CNN reported.
Two girl cousins, aged two and three, were taken from their doorstep kidnapped in broad daylight.
And when Yonelisa and Zandile Mali were found a few days later in the township north of Johannesburg, the news only got worse.
The two girls had been raped and murdered, their lifeless bodies dumped in a public toilet in Diepsloot.
Since that discovery October 15, five men have been accused of kidnapping, raping and killing the two little girls.
The suspects appeared briefly in court in Pretoria Thursday but the trial has been adjourned until November 1 while investigations continue, Medupe Simasiku, a spokesman for South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority, told CNN.
Investigators are currently analyzing DNA evidence and awaiting official identification of the five men, he said.
A confession from one of the suspects was legally obtained and will be used in court, according to Simasiku, but the other suspects have not confessed to the alleged crimes. All five will defend themselves in court.
Residents of Diepsloot demonstrated outside Pretoria Magistrate’s Court as the men made their appearance, voicing their anger over the killings.
The sprawling, densely populated township on the outskirts of Johannesburg is one of the most violent places in the country, making it a challenge for any parent to keep their child safe here.
But Yonelisa’s mother, Thokozani Mali, tried her best. She was at home with the girls on the day they were taken, checking on them every five minutes as they played together.
Why brutality is ingrained in psyche of South Africa
She discovered they’d vanished after going to check when all went quiet. Family, neighbors and the police joined a frantic hunt for the toddlers.
Ten days after their bodies were found, Thokozani finds it hard to talk about the loss of her only child.
“I am trying to be strong,” she told CNN. “When I am sleeping, she always next to me, so when I think of that I feel like crying.”
Two girl cousins, aged two and three, were taken from their doorstep kidnapped in broad daylight.
And when Yonelisa and Zandile Mali were found a few days later in the township north of Johannesburg, the news only got worse.
The two girls had been raped and murdered, their lifeless bodies dumped in a public toilet in Diepsloot.
Since that discovery October 15, five men have been accused of kidnapping, raping and killing the two little girls.
The suspects appeared briefly in court in Pretoria Thursday but the trial has been adjourned until November 1 while investigations continue, Medupe Simasiku, a spokesman for South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority, told CNN.
Investigators are currently analyzing DNA evidence and awaiting official identification of the five men, he said.
A confession from one of the suspects was legally obtained and will be used in court, according to Simasiku, but the other suspects have not confessed to the alleged crimes. All five will defend themselves in court.
Residents of Diepsloot demonstrated outside Pretoria Magistrate’s Court as the men made their appearance, voicing their anger over the killings.
The sprawling, densely populated township on the outskirts of Johannesburg is one of the most violent places in the country, making it a challenge for any parent to keep their child safe here.
But Yonelisa’s mother, Thokozani Mali, tried her best. She was at home with the girls on the day they were taken, checking on them every five minutes as they played together.
Why brutality is ingrained in psyche of South Africa
She discovered they’d vanished after going to check when all went quiet. Family, neighbors and the police joined a frantic hunt for the toddlers.
Ten days after their bodies were found, Thokozani finds it hard to talk about the loss of her only child.
“I am trying to be strong,” she told CNN. “When I am sleeping, she always next to me, so when I think of that I feel like crying.”
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