23-month-old Baby Brutally Stabb3d to Death in South Africa hospital
Retshidisitswe Mahlangu, a 23-month-old toddler, was brutally murdered in a Vereeniging, Gauteng, Province, South Africa, hospital.
The tragic event took place in the Old Vereeniging Hospital, also referred to as 21 on Friday, January 12, 2024.
The toddler’s 53-year-old grandmother, Paulina Mahlangu, described the sight of Friday’s events, saying the toddler was discovered with her stomach slashed open and a knife still lodged in her head.
Paulina claims that when the incident started, she was at work because her daughter, Nthabiseng Mahlangu, 25, had gone to run errands in Retshidisitswe with a friend.
“Nthabiseng had left the child with her friend when she went to run errands in town. This is something she and her friend usually do; they babysit for one another,” she explained.
“She says she was surprised to see the friend in town, and when she questioned her about the whereabouts of the kids, the friend said that she left the kids behind.”
Paulina claims that Nthabiseng rushed back to discover her toddler gone.
Following a search for the child, her body was subsequently found next to other empty rooms on the hospital grounds.
“This incident has broken us as a family. My daughter’s friend knew very well that my sister was home, she could have left the child with my sister,”
“We have so many questions because up until now, no one can tell us what happened. Even if the person that did this gets caught, it will still not bring back my granddaughters’ life.”
According to the family, they hope that justice will be done.
Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo, the police spokeswoman, acknowledged the unfortunate incident and stated that an inquiry into the murder case has been started.
He called on anyone with information to come forward that could aid in the investigation or aid in the suspects’ capture.