Alleged mob justice incident at Slovo Park leaves man dead

Gauteng police have appealed to communities not to take the law into their own hands. This is after a man was severely assaulted at Slovo Park informal settlement west of Johannesburg.

He died from his injuries in hospital. It is believed the community accused him of setting a shack on fire resulting in 20 people, including a three-year-old, sustaining burn wounds.

Gauteng police spokesperson Mavela Masondo has condemned the alleged vigilante attack.

“Although we sympathise with the people that got burnt there, at the same time, we condemn the situation of people taking the law into their own hands. People will say it is justice; they call it mob justice, for us there is no justice. So, if people start taking the law into their own hands and start killing another person, it’s total criminality.”

The police are investigating a murder case.

Resident Mohanuwa Chaotsane describes what she saw.

“Yesterday evening while I was cooking, I heard people screaming that it is burning. Then I quickly went out to check what was happening. We found out that there was a man who was looking for his wife in her business premises, holding something like a petrol bomb. He poured it all over the place, then the fire occurred.”