365 South Africa

31st December 2011

2011-12-31T17:29:00.000+02:00

Thanks and so long for all the fish...

Have a good New Year!!!

DJ makes twit of himself

The presidency had to issue a statement on Nelson Mandela’s health yesterday after a Johannesburg radio DJ got it all wrong, taking to Twitter to announce the former president was ill – after watching TV file footage from January.

The footage of the former statesman in hospital was being shown by broadcaster e.tv during a Year in Review package it was broadcasting to mark the end of 2011.

Kaya FM morning show host Bob Mabena, watching the footage with the sound turned off, then tweeted: “Breaking news – Nelson Mandela is in hospital.”

The news was then picked up by a South African news website with more than 30 000 followers, which said it was following up on the information.

Later the news site apologised, confirming that Mandela was not in hospital: “We apologise for following up an incorrect lead.”

30th December 2011

2011-12-30T22:08:00.000+02:00

The end is in sight...........

Wear a helmet for New Year’s Eve in Hillbrow

Fridges might fly and beds fall from the sky as residents in Joburg's Hillbrow district see in the New Year by throwing broken furniture on to the streets below.

Police will send in helicopters, armoured vehicles and special units on Saturday night to patrol the unruly area, which has earned a reputation as a trouble spot at the turn of the year.

Every year a dozen-odd people among those who dare to venture outside on December 31 are hit by crashing objects thrown out of high-rise apartment blocks – everything from televisions to kitchen appliances.

29th December 2011

2011-12-29T19:12:00.002+02:00

SA’s third hospital rape in 3 months

The man who walked into a North West hospital and allegedly raped a patient briefly appeared in the Mmabatho Magistrate's Court, North West police said on Thursday.

“The 29-year-old suspect appeared in court on Wednesday on a charge of rape,” spokesman Lt-Col Lesego Metsi said.

He apparently entered the Mahikeng Provincial Hospital around 3pm on Christmas day pretending to be visiting a patient in the women's ward. There were three women in the room.

“After realizing that the other two patients were in a critical condition and could not speak nor scream, the suspect approached the third patient, a 22-year-old female and allegedly raped her.”

28th December 2011

2011-12-28T19:49:00.000+02:00

Mac D’s sorry for blind woman bungle

A blind woman and her guide dog were reportedly chased out of a McDonalds restaurant in Pretoria on Christmas Day.

The managing director of McDonalds South Africa has apologised to a blind woman who was chased out of one of the hamburger restaurants on Christmas Day because she had brought her guide dog inside.

Greg Solomon told Sapa he would see to it that the woman, 33-year-old Sanet Gouws, would have the experience that she should have had in the first place.

“McDonalds does allow guide dogs in our restaurants,” Solomon said.

“We regret this happened to the lady. On behalf of McDonalds I apologise sincerely to her.”

27th December 2011

2011-12-27T19:36:00.000+02:00

Beachgoers behave, hotels jam-packed

Numbers seem to be down from previous years but a big crowd sat the paddling pools at Durbans beachfront enjoying their boxing day Picture: Shelley Kjonstad

Tourists have packed Durban’s beach hotels to the rafters, while sea rescue units and police say beachgoers are toeing the line this season.

Apart from an incident at Richards Bay, where three children were rescued from drowning by the National Sea Rescue Institute on Christmas Day, the KwaZulu-Natal coastline has seemingly been incident-free.

The three children were admitted to The Bay Hospital and were in serious, but stable, condition.

26th December 2011

2011-12-26T19:24:00.002+02:00

Doctor shoots self
Johannesburg - A 72-year-old doctor appeared to have shot and killed himself and a man in his forties was believed to have been killed in an act of mob justice in the northern provinces of South Africa, SABC radio news reported on Sunday.

The incident involving the doctor happened in Marble Hall, Limpopo, and involved a 9mm pistol. No suicide note was left, according to police.

25th December 2011

2011-12-25T22:14:00.000+02:00

Long Day, but much fun had by all!!

More than 100 Christmas babies for SA

Over 100 Christmas babies have been delivered in the country so far, officials said on Sunday.

Forty-one babies were born in the Eastern Cape. This includes 20 boys and 21 girls, said provincial health department spokesman Sizwe Kupelo.

The first one, Nonzuzo Toliwe, was born at midnight weighing 2.68kg.

In Limpopo, the number of babies born since midnight stands at 28. The first delivery occurred at Bela Bela hospital Ä a health baby girl weighing 3.5kg.

24th December 2011

2011-12-24T19:33:00.000+02:00

Sour note has a sweet ending

A Pretoria musician who last week forgot a R50 000, 85-year-old violin on the Gautrain got an early Christmas present when the prized instrument was recovered - with a little help from a friend.

Herman Steyn, a former member of famed South African act DNA Strings, was boarding a flight to Cape Town last Monday when he realised he had left his Hawkes and Son violin on the Gautrain, which he had used to get to the airport from Pretoria.

“I felt ice cold. I am a musician, so my instrument is very important to me. I thought to myself, ‘That’s the end. All my savings are going to go into a new instrument’,” said Steyn, who was on his way to attend his cousin’s wedding in Cape Town.

“I was busy phoning the Gautrain call centre when I noticed someone was actually phoning me,” explained the 28-year-old. That someone was Liezl Clayton, a friend of Steyn who teaches music at Midstream College.

“I had left her business card inside my violin’s case, so when Gautrain security personnel found it, they phoned her and she in turn contacted me,” he said.

23rd December 2011

2011-12-23T20:14:00.000+02:00

Vagrant gone Wild

A vagrant who has pestering residents and motorists from Melville and surrounding areas for months caused more commotion in the Richmond suburb yesterday morning by running around and taunting people.

The man who had apparently lost his clothes the previous evening and is who is seemingly addicted to glue appeared to be spaced out.

22nd December 2011

2011-12-22T21:10:00.002+02:00

21 injured in train-car smash

A motorist being chased by Durban metro police crashed off a bridge and caused a train to derail in Isipingo, injuring 21 people on Thursday afternoon.

“Durban metro police were chasing a suspicious-looking vehicle when the driver lost control while going around a bend and the car ended up on the track,” police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane said.

The train could not stop in time and crashed into the car near Reunion Station.

“The driver got out and ran away before the train hit the car.”

ER24 paramedics spokesman Derrick Banks said the car was found wedged between one of the coaches and the wall of the bridge.

21st December 2011

2011-12-21T19:04:00.000+02:00

Dad ends life as kids come home

Five years ago, Sergeant Henderik Heinz lost his wife in a car crash, leaving him to raise his two teenage children.

On Saturday, a week before Christmas, Heinz, 38, allegedly ended his life by shooting himself in the head – as his children walked up the driveway of their Richards Bay home after visiting their maternal grandparents.

On Tuesday, his distraught mother, Doreen, said her son had been battling to deal with the death of his wife, Antoinette, and being a single father to his children, aged 19 and 17. Coupled with the stress of his job, she said, he had reached the end of the road.

“After Antoinette died, Henderik battled to get along. But he managed to find his feet. He always said to me he was stressed at work. I encouraged him to get professional help. I never expected him to kill himself.”

20th December 2011

2011-12-20T22:41:00.000+02:00

Had a lovely evening with an old friend, much fun.

Two held for alleged ivory theft

Two Chinese nationals have been arrested for the illegal possession of ivory in Table View, Cape Town, police said on Tuesday.

The Hawks had received information from the public about a foul smell emanating from a house, spokesman Colonel McIntosh Polela said.

According to SABC news they were arrested at a luxury flat after residents noticed “strange activities” in the parking lot.

Said Polela: “When the police investigated they found people busy cutting elephant tusks. The tusks were apparently cut into small pieces to make jewellery.”

19th December 2011

2011-12-19T20:24:00.002+02:00

Each time I write about a horrific story, I think it can't get any worse, well it can....

Home was torture chamber for three

It was his secret lair: boarded-up windows, padlocked doors and dark, dingy rooms with urine-stained floors.

In it, he held hostage two generations of his family: his 30-year-old mentally ill daughter, her 17-year-old sister and his 15-year-old granddaughter.

And there he beat them on their backs with a sjambok, threatened to kill them with his gun, starved them for days and fed them only bread and water.

To top it off, he molested them, repeatedly – at least according to a social worker.

The house is in Forest Hill, southern Joburg. The man cannot be named as this would reveal the identities of his daughters and granddaughter.

He is believed to be a former policeman and a sangoma. He works from home as a handyman and builder.

The 51-year-old was arrested on December 3 after police caught him in bed with his granddaughter. They were both half-naked.

18th December 2011

2011-12-18T19:14:00.000+02:00

Juju ridicules 'shower man'

ANC Youth League president Julius Malema has again ridiculed President Jacob Zuma, this time leading supporters in a song about how "the shower man is giving us a hard time" - while gesturing with a make-believe shower head at the party's Limpopo conference.
Malema's supporters demanded that Zuma be removed, accusing him of masterminding a "coup" in Limpopo.

Last week, Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan placed under national administration several key Limpopo departments responsible for awarding tenders. Malema is a beneficiary of several tenders.

17th December 2011

2011-12-17T19:55:00.001+02:00

Had alittle drink bout an hour ago and it went straight to my head....one of my favourite scenes in Jaws just before he grabs a revolver and trys to shoot a 20ft Shark....hahaha never gets old for me.
Couldn't resist this story...

Porn TV meets with resistance

Despite the outcry from several religious groups, SA satellite TV service TopTV will launch its 24-hour porn service next year.

Three adult channels, including Playboy TV will be available on a stand-alone separate bouquet offered by the pay TV service for R199 a month. “The adult pack that is soon to be introduced on the TopTV platform comes on the back of research that has found there is a viable market for adult content in SA,” said Melinda Connor, spokeswoman for TopTV

16th December 2011

2011-12-17T19:51:00.000+02:00

Slight technical hitch, post a day late...anybody out there? anybody even notice? How many times can you watch Jaws in your lifetime....I've lost count.

Heath Quits

Advocate William Heath has resigned as head of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU0, just 17 days after President Jacob Zuma controversially appointed him to the post.

15th December 2011

2011-12-15T23:11:00.000+02:00

Its drug week indeed.

A drug mule tells us how it's done

She has made five trips to four different countries. She has conned immigration officials and foreign police, worked with four different syndicates and received more than R60 000 in cash. And on three occasions she nearly got caught – but she believes luck was on her side.
Tina (whose real name is known to The Star) has been a successful drug trafficker since February.
The 44-year-old spoke to The Star after one South African drug mule, Janice Linden, was executed in China and another, Nolubabalo Nobanda, 23, was caught in Thailand on Monday.
“I don’t think anyone can judge anyone until they are in a situation like this. It’s not easy. It’s very stressful. People must not think it’s easy,” said Tina on Wednesday.

Tina, who lives in the south of Joburg, got into drug trafficking as an unemployed middle-aged woman with a criminal record.

“I became a desperate woman, desperate to feed my children. It’s not like I haven’t tried everything else, I have – but I have no other option.” She has two sons, aged 23 and two.

14th December 2011

2011-12-14T19:08:00.000+02:00

SA woman hid cocaine in dreadlocks

Nobanda Nolubabalo was searched when police said they noticed a white substance in her hair shortly after she stepped off a flight at Suvarnabhumi Airport. Police found 1.5 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of $150 000 hidden in her dreadlocks.

SA woman hid cocaine in dreadlocks
Nolubabalo Nobanda did not fit the police’s profile of a drug mule. She matriculated from one of SA’s top girl’s schools before heading to Wits University.

But on Tuesday night, 23-year-old Nobanda, who is originally from Grahamstown, was spending her second night in a Thai jail, the institution that is likely to be her home for a long time to come. She is the second South African drug mule to make international headlines this week.

13th December 2011

2011-12-13T19:37:00.000+02:00

Man gets 46 years for killing wives

The Mdantsane Magistrate's Court in the Eastern Cape has sentenced an East London man to 46 years in jail for the murder of his two wives.

An East London man was sentenced by the Mdantsane Magistrate's Court in the Eastern Cape to 46 years in jail for the murder of his two wives, it was reported on Tuesday.

Fifty-six-year-old Sipho Phobana was convicted on Monday for beating and stabbing Ntombizanele Njobe and Nonzima Mani to death on February 14, the SABC reported.

During his testimony Phobana said he was angry with his wives after R6 000 that he had saved for his mother's funeral went missing.

He argued with his wives and then chased them outside before assaulting them with a panga and a stick.

The incident reportedly occurred in front of his nine-year-old son

12th December 2011

2011-12-12T20:44:00.001+02:00

SA woman executed in China

A South African woman has been executed in China for smuggling drugs into that country, eNews reported on Monday.

Janice Bronwyn Linden, 35, was executed by lethal injection.

Linden, 35, from KwaZulu Natal, was caught in the Chinese city of Guangzhou carrying 3kg of crystal methamphetamine in November 2008.

According to reports, Linden would only have been told of her execution this morning as is the practice of the Chinese government.

Two of Linden's sisters were in China and were to be have been allowed an hour with her before she was put to death

11th December 2011

2011-12-11T19:22:00.000+02:00

SHOOT TO KILL: INSIDE A SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE DEATH SQUAD

THE Sunday Times has uncovered evidence of an alleged "hit squad" operating in KwaZulu-Natal under the ultimate command of the province's Hawks boss, Major-General Johan Booysen.
The Cato Manor organised crime unit in Durban has allegedly committed scores of assassinations, some in retaliation for suspected cop killings and others related to ongoing taxi wars.

Booysen was previously the provincial head of organised crime. Suspended police chief General Bheki Cele caused a stir among provincial top brass last year when he unexpectedly promoted Booysen to head the Hawks in KwaZulu-Natal, even though his unit had courted controversy through its disproportionately high kill rate of crime suspects.

Cele has been blamed for fuelling the killings of taxi bosses by making inflammatory remarks. According to court papers filed by taxi bosses fearing assassination at the hands of the unit, Cele reportedly said, speaking at the funeral of a slain police taxi task team investigator Superintendent Zethembe Chonco: "If SAPS members cannot arrest suspects and they feel that their lives are threatened they must take them to the nearest mortuary."

10th Decenber 2011

2011-12-10T21:28:00.000+02:00

Double rape horror

Two sisters who were allegedly raped by uniformed police on the same night in two different places last Friday hold hands during an interview with the Saturday Star. Photo: Paballo Thekiso

Two Joburg women have been left shattered. Their rapists are in jail this weekend. But the two sisters don’t know who to trust because two of the attackers were uniformed police sergeants.

“It feels as though I have nowhere to turn to. What hope is there for me... men who were supposed to protect me hurt me... they defiled me,” said Katrien* from her lawyer Ian Levitt’s Sandton office on Friday afternoon.

This week, police replaced the original investigating officer with an officer from the Independent Complaints Directors (ICD) as detectives search for a further two suspects, who the victims suspect might also be serving police officers.

9th December 2011

2011-12-09T19:42:00.000+02:00

Children left in car, woman held

A woman was arrested at a shopping centre in Vereeniging after paramedics had to break the window of her black BMW to rescue two severely dehydrated children, Beeld newspaper reported on Friday.

She was arrested at the River Square shopping centre after allegedly hitting a policeman upon seeing the broken window on Thursday.
Captain Shadow Mashobane said the woman would be charged with child neglect, resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer.
She reportedly arrived at the centre around 2pm with four children, leaving a six-month-old baby and two-year-old in the car. A car guard notified police and paramedics.

8th December 2011

2011-12-08T20:46:00.002+02:00

Man arrested in sugarcane murder

A man has been arrested in connection with the murder of a woman whose decomposing body was found in sugarcane fields in Dalton, KwaZulu-Natal police said on Thursday.

The 24-year-old man was believed to be an accomplice to the murder, said Lt-Col Vincent Mdunge.

He was arrested on Wednesday when he was found walking along the road about a kilometre away from where the woman's body was found.

Sizani Shelembe, 22, went missing from her home in Dalton on Friday, December 02, 2011.

She was reported missing on Monday, December 05, 2011 and her body was found in the sugarcane fields on Wednesday, said Mdunge

7th December

2011-12-07T19:00:00.002+02:00

Four arrested for stoning death

Four people have been arrested in connection with the stoning to death of a Zimbabwean man at Disteneng in Polokwane, police said on Wednesday.

Those arrested included members of the community policing forum and a resident who claimed the murdered man had robbed him of cash and cellphones, Lt-Col Moatshe Ngoepe said.

The four allegedly led a mob that brutally attacked and killed the man after he was pointed out by a resident.

Ngoepe said the victim was taken to Seshego Hospital where he died shortly after admission.

6th December 2011

2011-12-07T07:37:00.000+02:00

Console protest over 'rigged' election

Police fired rubber bullets at a crowd of Democratic Republic of Congo nationals gathered outside Luthuli House in Joburg yesterday, after the protestors had indecently exposed themselves and refused to disperse.
The crowd of about 200 gathered in President Street, carrying placards and handing out cardsthat bore a photograph of a DRC opposition leader, Etienne Tshiekedi.

5th December 2011

2011-12-05T16:57:00.002+02:00

Sick-bed arrest looms for Selebi

Disgraced former top cop Jackie Selebi may be arrested in his hospital bed after his lawyers failed to secure a delay in the deadline for his incarceration.

A meeting between Selebi’s lawyers and the Chief Registrar of the Johannesburg High Court, Viven Pather, did not end with the court agreeing to allow the former police commissioner to convalesce for another week before having to report to prison.

Selebi’s counsel Wynanda Coetzee and an associate arrived at the court early this morning and presented a medical certificate to the chief registrar, showing that their client was sick.

However, the evidence was not accepted by the registrar.

4th December 2011

2011-12-04T19:48:00.000+02:00

Minister calls for alcohol ban

Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini has called on her government colleagues to lead by example and ban alcohol at all state functions.

Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini has called on her government colleagues to lead by example and ban alcohol at all state functions, City Press reported on Sunday.

“Charity begins at home. We also call on all government employees not to drink and drive,” Dlamini was quoted saying.

Her call comes as her department leads government's anti-alcohol and substance abuse festive season programme that is set to be launched in the Western Cape on Wednesday.

The campaign with the theme “Towards an alcohol and drug-free South Africa” is part of an inter-ministerial anti-substance abuse programme.

3rd December 2011

2011-12-03T19:11:00.000+02:00

Selebi to dig deep

Former national police commissioner Jackie Selebi has to pay the State back for all his legal fees, the department of justice said on Friday.

“We are going to start calculating the actual amount owing and communicate with Mr Selebi through his lawyers,” department spokesman Tlali Tlali said.

When asked what would happen if Selebi could not pay back the money, Tlali said: “We will follow normal debt recovery processes.”

Selebi asked the State to assist him in carrying the cost of his legal fees during his corruption trial.

In a pre-trial agreement with the State, he agreed to pay back all the costs if he lost his case.

Selebi was sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment for corruption after accepting payments from convicted drug trafficker Glenn Agliotti, but appealed the conviction.

2nd December 2011

2011-12-02T17:52:00.001+02:00

Nando's plucks 'Last Dictator'

Don't mess with President Robert Mugabe. At least that's what Nando's seemed to be saying yesterday when they announced that they would pull an ad depicting him in a not-so-flattering light.
nando's said threats from millitants against its Zimbabwe branches had forced them to pull the ad, which has gone viral onYoutube, featuring that country's president as the "Last Dictator Standing"

1st December 2011

2011-12-01T17:04:00.002+02:00

End to Aids in - and out - of reach

The world is talking about stopping the Aids virus within decades – and it is not simply a pipe dream but a very real possibility. After years of toying with the alphabet – A for abstain, B for be faithful and C for condoms – we finally have some grown-up options.

While modest, this array of new weapons against HIV gives us a fighting chance to stop the virus. The weapons in the arsenal are:

Successful antiretroviral (ARV) treatment makes HIV-positive people with undetectable viral loads virtually non-infectious. This means that if we get as many HIV-positive people as possible on ARVs, it will have a massive impact on lowering HIV transmission.

30th November 2011

2011-11-30T20:06:00.002+02:00

Over R30m in police law suits

Gauteng police are facing more than R30 million in lawsuits for police brutality, wrongful arrest and negligence.

In six separate cases, the SAPS and Joburg metro police department (JMPD) stand accused of negligently shooting a minor in the eye, beating to death a person in custody, paralysing two motorists, and manhandling a woman and raping another at a police station.

And, in some of the cases, the only punishment the offending officers received was anger management classes.

29th November 2011

2011-11-29T18:08:00.000+02:00

Body found on sports ground

A body of an unknown man was found on a sports ground in Meqheleng near Ficksburg on Tuesday, Free State police said.

Passers-by found the body around 6am, Captain Phumelele Dhlamini said.

The man, believed to be in his mid-20s, had been stabbed five times in the chest.

“It appeared the motive for the murder was robbery as his shoes, trousers, and belt were missing,” Dhlamini said.

28th November 2011

2011-11-28T22:14:00.001+02:00

KZN downpour kills eight

At least eight people were reported dead, about 700 houses had been destroyed and thousands had been left displaced in KwaZulu-Natal, following last night’s heavy downpour, the eThekwini Disaster Management Unit said on Monday.

According to the SA Weather Bureau, 62.6mm of rain fell last night in Durban, which had already recorded 209.6mm for November, almost double its average.

The acting head of the eThekwini Emergency Control and Disaster Management Unit, Vincent Ngubane, said deaths had been recorded at Umlazi, Newlands East and Chatsworth.

The official death toll is eight, but the numbers could rise as emergency operations begin.

27th November 2011

2011-11-27T18:51:00.000+02:00

I'M FINISHED - MALEMA

JULIUS Malema admits he is "finished politically" - and intends becoming a cattle farmer.In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Times this week, the ANC Youth League leader said he had decided to go into cattle farming, as it was close to his heart.

"I have 20 cattle now. We will breed them, take them to the abattoir, slaughter them and then sell the meat. Now I am finished politically. They are saying I am suspended and all that," he said.
In addition, Malema was also given a herd of cattle as a gift by the Zimbabwean Reserve Bank governor, Gideon Gono, when he visited the country in April last year.
But he said: "I have not collected them because I had to find a place where I would put those cattle."
During the interview, at a boutique hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg, a tired-looking Malema, wearing a plain white T-shirt and tracksuit pants, was in no mood for photographs.

26th November 2011

2011-11-27T18:45:00.002+02:00

Woman’s body found in drain

A 23-year-old security guard has been arrested in connection with the murder of a city woman, Denise Stratford, whose body was found stuffed in a drain in Mooikloof.

The guard was arrested in Mamelodi East where police allegedly found him in possession of Stratford’s VW Polo which was reported missing after her murder.

Police reportedly also found a gun which they believe can be linked to the crime, as well as blood-stained clothes.

25th November 2011

2011-11-25T22:28:00.000+02:00

Woman knocked trying to help dog

The founder of an animal welfare society in the Karoo is in a serious condition at a Paarl hospital after she was hit by a car while helping an injured dog.

The Cape Times newspaper reported on Friday that Colette Teale, 60, the founder of the Karoo Animal Welfare Protection Society, broke both of her hips and possibly damaged her spine in the accident near the Du Toits Kloof tunnel outside Paarl on Wednesday.

"They (Teale and her husband Percy) had just dropped a dog at its new home," Teale's colleague, Lola Cox, told the newspaper.

"On the way back she saw a dog standing on a traffic island in the middle of the road.

"They wanted to help it so they stopped and she got out of the car. That's when a car hit her."

24th November 2011

2011-11-24T21:57:00.001+02:00

Cops cars idle after licences lapse

Despite nearly 20 Pretoria flying squad high-performance cars being “impounded” by the police management because of expired licence discs and members either having to use their own private vehicles to conduct patrols or hitch-hiking to their patrol areas, the Gauteng police management insists there has been no impact on service delivery.

The Pretoria News has discovered that for nearly two weeks, members of the unit have legally been prevented from using most of their vehicles because the licence discs of the unit’s vehicles have expired.

The discovery comes as members of the Pretoria K9 unit face similar problems, with three of their four cars having expired licence discs.

“While we understand the Flying Squad members’ concerns, we are not going to just sit around. The instructions not to use the cars if the 21-day mandatory period has passed are ridiculous and, as far as we are concerned, illegal. We will not obey them and we are working because it is our job to fight crime,” said a K9 unit member.

Some of the discs of the flying squad cars expired nearly two months ago.

While the police management claims there is no crisis, many of the unit’s members disagree.

The newspaper has learnt that in at least two instances in the past week, members of the flying squad were given lifts after motorists spotted them walking and hitch-hiking. A motorist, who alerted the Pretoria News to what was happening, said it was disgraceful.

23rd November 2011

2011-11-23T21:42:00.001+02:00

Paris' valedictory night at school. Much fun was had by all.

Teens fall pregnant for grants: report

Teenagers are falling pregnant to access social grants to alleviate poverty, according to a report by the Limpopo health and social department on Tuesday.

The report was issued after the department conducted a three-month study into teenage pregnancies and factors forcing children to abandon their education.

The report found 15.5 percent of participants fell pregnant to access child support grants. This behaviour forced children into inter-generational relationships with contraceptives largely ignored.

22nd November 2011

2011-11-22T20:40:00.002+02:00

Black Tuesday....

21st November 2011

2011-11-21T19:42:00.000+02:00

Feel like a cheerful story, with black tuesday coming tommorow, fancy a bit of a lighter story. The reality of the end of the project is starting todawn on me, its going to be strange without it, it has been such a huge part of my life...

Sky’s the limit for rooftop farming

Delegates to the massive Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP17) in Durban are going to learn all about rooftop farming – and they will not have too far too travel either.

Just across the road from the International Convention Centre, where the global conference is being held, there are cabbages, onions and spinach growing next to the taxi rank in Monty Naicker (Pine) Street.

Delegates, who are due to descend on Durban in their thousands at the weekend, will get to see how to grow food even though there might not be enough space. Even a wall can lend itself to growing tomatoes and granadillas.

20th November 2011

2011-11-20T09:55:00.000+02:00

Today after a frustrating drive across Jhb, it has to be the Momentum 94.7 cycle challenge...its a nice day, shouldn't you rather be sitting by the pool with your portable black and white tv plugged in drinking pina coladas...hey guess thats just me......

19th November 2011

2011-11-20T09:51:00.000+02:00

Slight technical hitch...several hours back and forth with neotel...here we go again.
A bit of silly after a week of serious...

Pirate dad saves the day

A Bluff woman says she had an unforgettable 30th birthday party for all the wrong reasons after her “booze cruise” vessel nearly hit a wall in Durban harbour.

Trudie Rutherford alleges that if it hadn’t been for the quick reactions of her father, licensed skipper Johan du Plooy, the vessel, the Sarie Marais, would have crashed. In keeping with the theme, Du Plooy was dressed as a ‘pirate’ at the time.

Rutherford has lodged a complaint with the South African Maritime Safety Authority, which confirmed yesterday that it had launched an investigation into Sarie Marais Cruises.

Company owner Rob Upton has emphatically denied the allegations.

18th November 2011

2011-11-18T19:56:00.000+02:00

Mail & Guardian ‘censored’

The Mail & Guardian hit the streets on Friday with the front page featuring a picture of Presidency spokesman Mac Maharaj alongside the words, in bold: “Censored. We cannot bring you this story in full due to a threat of criminal prosecution.”

According to a tweet on social networking site Twitter, its editor Nic Dawes said: “Just learned that the NPA Act has sections as bad as #secrecybill. Your M&G will look butchered tomorrow. Blame Mac Maharaj.”

On Twitter Dawes also posted a link to a picture of the weekly's front page for Friday, saying in another tweet: “Sorry to give you a paper that looks like this. A glimpse of life under #secrecybill.”

17th November 2011

2011-11-17T20:26:00.000+02:00

Thursday night....

Spade killer hears his fate

A gardener was jailed for 18 years on Thursday for killing a Pretoria woman with a spade because her husband hired him to kill her.

The High Court in Pretoria sentenced the 35-year-old Lucas Moloi to a total of 23 years imprisonment for murder and theft, but ordered that he serves 18 years.

Air hostess Cordelia Prinsloo, 59, was murdered at her house in Kameeldrift in October 2009.

Judge Winston Msimeki said society demanded that murderers be dealt with harshly.

16th November 2011

2011-11-16T20:55:00.001+02:00

Record rhino horn haul

Lam Tak-fai, acting head of Ports and Maritime Command, arranges rhino horns, part of a shipment of 33 horns, ivory chopsticks and bracelets seized by the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department, during a news conference in Hong Kong. Photo: Bobby Yip / Reuters

It could just be a new method used by syndicates to smuggle rhino horn out of the country: bulk consignments, hidden in containers and sent by sea. But rhino syndicates are not just using new smuggling routes, poachers also appear to be changing their tactics to target more animals.

On Monday, customs officials in Hong Kong discovered 33 rhino horns that had been hidden in a container on a ship that had left Cape Town. They also seized 758 ivory chopsticks and 127 ivory bracelets, which they estimated was worth HK$ 17.4 million (R18.17m).

Customs officers had apparently selected the container “acting on risk assessment”. It was marked as carrying 63 packages of scrap plastic. Using X-ray equipment, they found the contraband hidden inside a package of plastic scrap that had been placed at the rear of the container. The 33 horns, which weighed 86kg, constitute nearly a tenth of the rhinos poached in SA this year

15th November 2011

2011-11-15T19:56:00.002+02:00

Residents protest in Soweto

Pennyville residents in Soweto burnt tyres over a rental dispute on Tuesday, according to a Sapa photographer on scene.

He said the police were watching from a distance as about 30 residents burnt tyres and “made a noise”.

Police, approached by telephone by a reporter, said the protesters were not violent.

“The protesters were violent yesterday (Monday) but not today,” said Captain Phephi Matloumteto.

“They were throwing stones and burning tyres yesterday. The situation today (Tuesday) is calm and residents are just standing around.”

The protest was believed to be about the eviction of tenants, Matloumteto said

14th November 2011

2011-11-14T20:07:00.000+02:00

Hunt on for Tyibilika’s killers

South Africa’s rugby fraternity was reeling on Monday after the murder of former Springbok forward Solly Tyibilika who was gunned down in a shebeen in Nyanga on Sunday.

As the police began the hunt for the two men who opened fire at patrons in a tavern on Terminus Street at 2.20pm, his former teammates, coaches and rugby bosses paid tribute to a “special player”.

Dave Kagan, the president of Hamilton’s Rugby Club where Tyibilika coached the under-19 team, said the club was devastated.

13th November 2011

2011-11-13T17:51:00.000+02:00

Still hot.....

Malema's olive branch to Indians

Suspended ANC Youth League president Julius Malema has offered an olive branch to Indians, saying he was prepared to apologise again for using a derogatory term to describe the community.

This follows a complaint by Lenasia resident Basheer Lorgat made against Malema to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).
Malema was this week suspended for five years by the ANC for bringing the party into disrepute.
Last month, he used the term - "amaKula", a derogatory word to describe Indians - when he addressed a gathering at Thembelihle in Lenasia. He later apologised for the racial slur, adding that he had not realised it was offensive.
Malema told the Sunday Times Extra on Friday that his statement was "never intended to cause any harm". He said a statement he made that "black children should go to school with Indian children" was meant to be reconciliatory. "I can go and stand in Lenasia and apologise again, there is no problem. I can apologise anywhere they want me to apologise, there is no problem. I was not insulting anybody," he said.

12th November 2011

2011-11-12T14:56:00.001+02:00

Hot hot hot.......

Two KFC robbers shot dead

Two robbers were shot dead and two others were wounded in a shootout with police after a robbery at a KFC in Florida on the West Rand, according to a news report on Saturday.

The four held staff of the fried chicken outlet at gunpoint on Friday evening, and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash, the SABC reported.

Police responding to the distress call saw the getaway vehicle on the Main Reef Road and gave chase.

The men started shooting at police who returned fire.

“Two of the suspects were fatally wounded and two others were seriously wounded and were taken to hospital under police guard,” Lt-Col Katlego Mogale told the SABC.

11th November 2011

2011-11-11T18:47:00.002+02:00

Cosatu, anti-toll groups fired up

Anti-toll groups, including the Congress of SA Trade Unions in Gauteng agreed on Friday to jointly file a petition within 14 days to forward to Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele.

Cosatu, opposition parties, civil society organisations and residents reached the agreement during public hearings on the tolling system, held at the Johannesburg City Hall.

They would take to the streets of Gauteng in an attempt to force Ndebele to scrap the tolling system, they said.

Under the tolling system, which is set to come into effect in February, the drivers of light motor vehicles will have to pay R0.40/km to use certain highways.

Union federation Cosatu on Friday threatened to “turn the streets of Gauteng red” and protest to have the planned tolls in the province scrapped.

10th November 2011

2011-11-10T21:45:00.001+02:00

Malema Axed

Julius Malema is to be removed as leader of the ANC Youth League, and is to be suspended from the ANC for five years.
He is barred from involving himself in any activities of the ANCYL and the ANC for the duration of his suspension.
The sanctions against Malema come into immediate effect until such time as he indicates his intention to appeal.
He has 14 days to do so, at which time the sentence will be lifted pending the outcome of the appeal.

9th November 2011

2011-11-09T21:45:00.002+02:00

Driver arrested after assault

A taxi driver was arrested after he assaulted a traffic officer and tried to flee the scene, Cape Town traffic services said on Wednesday.

The driver was stopped along Stellenbosch Road in Blackheath on Tuesday and given a fine for not having a licence disc displayed on his windscreen, said Chief Inspector Merle Lourens.

“While the officer was writing out the traffic fine, the driver attacked him unexpectedly.”

When the officer tried to arrest him, the driver jumped into his minibus and tried to escape along the shoulder lane of the road.

The minibus then collided with a car at an intersection, said Lourens.

8th November 2011

2011-11-08T20:55:00.000+02:00

A feel good story for a change..

Biker’s brave organ drive

Donate an organ and you may just save seven lives.

This is the message Ilze Steyn and the Organ Donor Foundation are trying to spread.

Steyn, who is on a recipient list for a double lung transplant, is riding a motorbike throughout South Africa to raise awareness of the Organ Donor Foundation.

Sadly for Steyn, she could die within the next two to three years if she does not have the transplant.

Even so, she is determined to spread awareness of her situation and others in need of organs.

7th November 2011

2011-11-07T21:37:00.000+02:00

‘Biker’s speedometer read 190km/h’ - RTI

Hundreds of Road Traffic Inspectorate officers gathered at the Aryan Samaj Hall in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday to pay their last respects to their colleague, Asherina Ramklown, who was knocked down by a motorcyclist and killed on the N3 near Midmar on Saturday.

The officers formed a guard of honour as they bade their final farewell to Ramklown, 33, amid the anguished cries of her distraught family, who said that they would never be able to come to terms with her sudden and traumatic death.

6th November 2011

2011-11-06T19:11:00.000+02:00

Sunday again, never able to escape Sundayness.

Wits probes student attack on lecturer

THE University of the Witwatersrand has launched an investigation after a student hit a lecturer with a stick during an exam on Thursday.

The attack on Obinna Ozumba, a lecturer attached to the Wits School of Construction Economics and Management, took place in full view of a packed exam hall. Ozumba said yesterday he did not want to comment on the incident at this stage.
A second-year engineering student is alleged to have walked out of the hall shortly after the exam papers were handed out and returned with a big stick. The student then allegedly walked up to Ozumba and hit him on his back, according to a media report.
It was not immediately clear if other students came to the lecturer's defence, but campus security was called to remove the student from the hall, the report said .
Wits spokesperson Shirona Patel confirmed the attack, but declined to divulge further details.

5th November 2011

2011-11-05T19:17:00.000+02:00

Paris making chocolate orange slices, its very hard to loose weight when your child wants to be a pastry chef....died my hair red today, am liking it alot!! Gonna dye that man right outta my hair....

Scramble for dumped booze

Hordes of people last week flocked to a big hole in Kimberley. However, it wasn’t diamonds they were after, but a hole filled with buried toxic liquor, left over from a fire at a local wholesaler.

Children as young as 10 were seen digging up bottles, which authorities had secretly buried at a dump site.

The bottles were crushed following a raid on suspected diggers’ homes by the Kimberley police on Thursday. The fire did not reach the bottle store next door to the wholesaler, but bulk amounts of alcohol were rendered toxic due to heat exposure.

Despite calls from authorities for residents not to sell or drink the alcohol, Kimberley residents continued to flock to the area last week.

One man was admitted to hospital last week after consuming the liquor found at the site

4th November 2011

2011-11-04T17:19:00.000+02:00

The flight of the black rhinos
...and the Sars hunt that nets another two alleged Thai poachers

Up,up and away out of danger....a rhino gets a helping hand being transported to its new safer home.
Weighing 1400kg, the animal is first put to sleep before the 24km helicopter journey begins.
es
This is one of the dramatic measures being used to save the rhino as latest figures published by the wildlife charity reveal the number of rhinos killed in South Africa this year has already exceeded deaths in 2010.

3rd November 2011

2011-11-03T21:09:00.000+02:00

Sometimes I just want to do a story that doesn't involve a death.....

Gone in just 2 minutes

One of five thieves makes his way into the Digicape store after smashing the front door with a crowbar. Another helps himself to iMacs in the stockroom.

These images from CCTV footage show a brazen gang smashing into the Digicape store in the city centre and making off with more than half a million rand’s worth of high-end Apple products within minutes.

The two incidents captured on the footage show the gang making off with their loot in two minutes.

The Roeland Street shop, which mostly sells Apple products, was also broken into last November when products worth R250 000 were stolen.

In the latest incident on Wednesday, the robbers used a crowbar to smash the window at about 2.34am. Five men then set about taking iPads, iMacs, Macbooks and processors, among other equipment, from the shop and stock room.

2nd November 2011

2011-11-03T06:55:00.000+02:00

excuse the late entry, so tired last night just crashed...

More than 6 000 unroadworthy vehicles scrapped

Over 6 000 unroadworthy public transport and freight vehicles were scrapped from service in October, the Road Traffic Management Corporation said today.

More than 1 800 of these were from Mpumalanga, spokesperson Ashref Ismail said in a statement.

The vehicles included buses, minibuses and trucks. More than 46 000 fines were issued to public transport and freight drivers during the same month, said Ismail.

1st November 2011

2011-11-01T20:02:00.000+02:00

tired tonight, Paris baking biscuits...Yay!!!

'God said they needed to be killed'

A Durban man accused of murdering both his parents said on Tuesday they were sacrificed as “God said they needed to be killed”.

Hardus Lotter, 23, told the Durban High Court he believed he should sacrifice anything for God, even if it meant killing his parents.

Lotter has pleaded not guilty, along with his sister Nicolette, 29, and her then boyfriend Mathew Naidoo, 25 to murdering Maria Magadalena (Riekie) Lotter, 52, and Johannes Petrus Lotter, 53, at their Westville home on July 19, 2008.

Lotter was strangled and his wife was stabbed.

The Lotters said they were under the influence of Naidoo who told them he was the third son of God.

Lotter said he believed he was part of a cult and that Naidoo was the leader who issued certain instructions.

If he and his sister did not comply, they were threatened by Naidoo.

Lotter was threatened with baldness, castration and even that he would get prostate cancer, while his sister's punishment was that her breasts would be cut off.

31st October 2011

2011-10-31T21:46:00.000+02:00

Well, Ihaven't written for a while, time to get back on that horse, I'm sure it must be a little boring just reading the news stories, or perhaps its more boring reading what I have to say, I console myself with the fact that hardly anybody is reading my ramblings anyhow. Its been a hard year so far emotionally and for alot of people in my lives health has been an isssue, as I sit dunking my low gi sugar free rusk into my fructose sweetened tea, I wonder if the fear of being unhealthy may make my life bloody miserable...i've joined the gym, thats funny if you know me. I was just laughing tonight with a friend about making an Olivia Newton John aerobics dance type video....not so funny now! I have come to the conclusion just recentelty recently recentely, one of five words i just can't get..that i don't want to be in a relationship for a very long time, if ever again, oh yes that may sound so delicately upturned hand on forehead, but there it is. Just a fact. Somebody call the cat shelter....lady needs company! no, thats a cheesy stereotype, I gots my faithful hound by my side,my toothless old lady dog wrenched off the neighbours who were cruel cruel cruel to her. Ok, so now I am rambling, the story for this evening, sometimes I just choose them because when I read the story I just see an image in my head immediately, this is one of those......

Man stable after crash, bee stings

A man who was attacked by a swarm of bees after his car crashed into a tree containing a bee hive is in a stable condition in intensive care, Mediclinic Nelspruit said on Monday.

“The patient arrived in respiratory distress (on Sunday), but he is in a stable condition now,” said spokeswoman Robyn Baard.

The man – named by Beeld newspaper on Monday as security guard Patric Mavuso – lost control of his vehicle on Belladonna Plant Road, Nelspruit, on Sunday morning.

The car crashed into a tree, dislodging a bee hive. The bees immediately started stinging Mavuso, who managed to run to a nearby river and jump in to avoid further stings.

Baard said he had “too many stings to count” when he arrived at the hospital but these had all been removed.

30th October 2011

2011-10-30T20:34:00.000+02:00

Hours after march against poverty, Juju jets off to R10m party with the rich

Malema couldn't get away from the masses fast enough. He was whisked away in a blue-light convoy to catch a business class flight to party it up at the five-star resort.
The wedding was that of his friend, Limpopo-based property developer David Mabilu, who booked out the entire Long Beach resort for 300 guests.
Yesterday Johannesburg Metro Police Department spokesman Wayne Minnaar could not confirm whether metro officers had given Malema an escort to the airport but said such service was provided in "emergency situations".

29th October 2011

2011-10-29T20:43:00.000+02:00

Woman sex groper faces jail

A South African woman executive faces jail for groping a male flight steward and demanding sex while drunk on a plane.

Katherine Goldberg, 25, of Ealing Common, London, grabbed the cabin crew member’s crotch after drinking half a litre of whisky on a Virgin Atlantic flight.

And this week she was told by a British magistrate that she faces up to ten years behind bars for the offence after magistrates ruled that the case was too serious for them to deal with.

Goldberg pleaded guilty at Uxbridge Magistrate’s Court to sexual assault and being drunk on an aircraft.

28th October 2011

2011-10-28T21:35:00.000+02:00

Joggers’ deaths: Ndebele responds

Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele has welcomed the bail conditions imposed in the trial of a man accused of killing five joggers while driving drunk.

“We welcome the bail conditions imposed in the trial of the driver, particularly that he is not allowed to drive while out on bail,” Ndebele said in a statement.

“Each and every one of us has a role to play in preventing deaths and injuries on the road.”

Sibusiso Langa, 43, appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Friday and was granted R80,000 bail.

Bail was not opposed and he was ordered to hand in his driver's licence and his passports. He holds South African and Unites States citizenship.

In his affidavit submitted to the court in support of his bail application, Langa indicated he would not oppose the charges.

He faces five charges of murder, one of attempted murder and one of drunken driving.

27th October 2011

2011-10-27T20:32:00.000+02:00

Stage 1 of ANCYL march over

ANC Youth League members had completed the first stage of their three-stage march for economic freedom by 3.30pm on Thursday.

Around 5000 marchers handed over a memorandum to the Chamber of Mines in the Johannesburg CBD in the first stage.

They had set off from Beyers Naude Square at noon, four hours later than planned due to transport problems.

Led by ANC Youth League president Julius Malema and a formation of police cars, four Casspirs and a water cannon, the group sang revolutionary songs and danced through the CBD.

Chamber of Mines CEO Bheki Sibiya accepted the memorandum after ANCYL deputy president Ronald Lamola read out the grievances contained in it.

Sibiya told reporters the chamber would apply its mind to the content of a memorandum.

“We understand that the level of unemployment is too high and we agree with the youth league that the level of poverty is too high,” he said.

“We will distribute it (memorandum) to our 55 members.”

The league was demanding the nationalisation of mines and the introduction of probation programmes within companies to give youth skills in mining.

The memorandum calls for better wages for mine workers and the active involvement of mining companies in the development of the industry.

After spending 20 minutes at the chamber's offices, marchers headed to the next planned stage of the march, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in Sandton.

Malema urged supporters to exercise maximum discipline throughout their “long walk to economic freedom”.

“Take your time and walk. We have the whole day and night. You must not run,” he said.

“We (the leadership) are coming to march with you because we are all from poor backgrounds.”

However, the marchers' spirits started flagging just after 2pm as they entered Oxford Road in Killarney.

They stopped to wait for a water tanker as several people were dehydrated and at least five people had fainted.

The marchers were no longer singing and dancing, but shuffling along in the heat.

26th October 2011

2011-10-26T21:12:00.000+02:00

Killer forced wife to dig own grave

Igshaan “Gaddafi” Isaacs made his wife dig her own grave, saying he would bury her in it if she ever left him.

Eight years later, Isaacs put a gun to pretty Fazlin Arendse’s head and pulled the trigger because he thought she was having an affair with a young Muslim holy man.

Last week, the 46-year-old Isaacs pleaded guilty to the June 2010 shooting of Fazlin, 27, and Moulana Sharief Hendricks, 31, inside her Oval South, Beacon Valley home in Mitchell’s Plain. He also pleaded guilty to charges of possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

Today, the Daily Voice can also reveal the shocking images taken moments after the two were gunned down.

On Tuesday, Fazlin’s own mother, Fatima van Stavel revealed her daughter was forced to dig a huge hole at Swartklip beach when she threatened to leave Isaacs.

And that Isaacs had threatened to bury her in the same grave if she dared get involved with anyone else.

25th October 2011

2011-10-25T21:06:00.000+02:00

Five guns found in dustbin

Five firearms have been found in a dustbin in Thokoza on the East Rand, Gauteng police said on Tuesday.

Police, acting on a tip-off, made the discovery near a house on Monday night, Lieutenant-Colonel Lungelo Dlamini said.

The three rifles, a revolver and a pistol were believed to have been used in the bombing of ATMs in Brackendowns, Alrode and City Deep, all in the south of Joburg, last month.

24th October 2011

2011-10-24T19:17:00.000+02:00

Girl burns in ‘satanic ritual'

A teenage girl is in a coma after she and a friend were doused with petrol and set alight in an apparent satanic ritual.

The girls, one 18 and the other 16, were among eight youngsters who went to a koppie behind the Linmeyer swimming pool on Julius Street on Friday night.

According to Samantha Theologo, her 18-year-old sister Kirsty has 75 percent burns to her body from the waist up.

Doctors had told them, she said, that they were worried about her sister’s recovery because her lungs and throat were damaged. Kirsty was scheduled to have surgery on Monday.

Samantha said the group of five boys and three girls knew each other well and her sister would hang out with them often. One of the boys was a neighbour and one of the girls lived on the same street.

Teenagers say the koppie is a well-known spot for youngsters to sit at weekends to look at the view and drink.

The Theologo family heard from the other victim – Kirsty’s friend, who is recovering in a private hospital – that the boys had decided that the two would be sacrificed in some sort of satanic ritual.

23rd October 2011

2011-10-23T22:04:00.002+02:00

'You belong with the Ku Klux Klan'

Judge slams man for racist assault, but awards him R350 000 to be paid by the Department of Justice

AN East Rand man who bashed a black man's head against a tree trunk in a racist attack eight years ago, is not only a free man - he is R350000 richer.
But Andrew Alves's court victory came at a price. A Johannesburg High Court judge supported the Boksburg man's claim for damages, but likened the former prisoner's behaviour to that of the Ku Klux Klan.
In 2005 Alves, 34, admitted to the 2003 assault outside his home in Boksburg. He was found guilty on a more serious charge of attempted murder and sentenced to nine years in jail.
He appealed his conviction, was released in 2008 after spending 26 months behind bars - and then sued the Department of Justice over an "unfair" delay in his appeal.

22nd October 2011

2011-10-22T21:34:00.000+02:00

Be counted or go to prison

Be counted or go to jail. This is the message from Stats SA to South Africans who refuse to be counted in Census 2011.

Census spokesman Trevor Oosterwyk said that in terms of the Statistics Act South Africans faced a R10 000 fine or six months in jail if they refused to answer questions by enumerators.

He could not say how many households around the country had refused to be counted, but said that Stats SA would issue warning letters to those who did not co-operate, which would explain what was expected of them and the consequences of their continued refusal to comply.

If they still refused, the matter would be heard in court.

21st October 2011

2011-10-21T20:58:00.000+02:00

Tutu condemns Gaddafi killing

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu condemned on Friday the killing of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, saying mob justice and violence should always be deplored.

“The manner of the killing of Muammar Gaddafi on Thursday totally detracts from the noble enterprise of instilling a culture of human rights and democracy in Libya,” he said in a statement.

“... the people of Libya should have demonstrated better values than those of their erstwhile oppressor.”

Gaddafi was shot dead in his hometown of Sirte. He sustained fatal injuries to the head and stomach.

20th October 2011

2011-10-20T20:47:00.000+02:00

Wait, is this another murder?

Lakeview couple found dead

.A married couple has been found dead in their house in Lakeview in Welkom, Free State police said on Thursday.

A relative discovered their decomposed bodies around 9am on Wednesday, Sergeant Puleng Motsoeneng said.

It appeared the bodies had been lying there for three weeks, she said.

The couple were identified as Jan Prinsloo, 51, and his 45-year-old wife Johanna.

Motsoeneng said neighbours last saw the Prinsloos about three weeks ago.

“It was not immediately clear how they were killed, and nothing seemed to have been stolen from the house.”

A knife and a spade covered in bloodstains were found in the house.

Motsoeneng said police were searching for Johanna's brother, Sydney Bateman, for questioning. He had been living with the Prinsloos.

19th October 2011

2011-10-19T20:13:00.000+02:00

Gangs of pupils terrorising communities

Five communities in Limpopo are being terrorised by gangs that steal and even hack their victims to death with pangas and butcher’s knifes.

These gangs are operating in Bloodriver, Makgofe, Spook Park, Deiring and Mmotong-wa-Perekisi, outside Polokwane.

Armed groups of young men and women rule with an iron fist, and villagers refuse to speak openly against Ma-Zulu, Mateki, Mawestside, Maprisioners, MaZone2 and Ma24.

Some gang members are pupils as young as 14, although the ringleaders are adults in their late twenties. They have marked their territories, which rivals and strangers are not allowed to cross into.

Now they have taken over control at local schools.

“They smoke in class, they play music on their cellphones during lessons, all of us know that they hide their dangerous weapons in the toilets,” said a pupil at Molautsi Secondary School in Bloodriver.

18th October 2011

2011-10-18T18:54:00.000+02:00

Superbug linked to third death

Another private hospital patient has died following the outbreak of a highly resistant bacteria-producing enzyme several weeks ago. This brings to three the number of deaths partially caused by the bug and to 10 the number of patients who have contracted the superbug which surfaced at the Life Glynnwood Hospital in Benoni recently.

Hospital spokeswoman Marietjie Shelly confirmed the latest death on Monday.

“One of the three patients who were being treated in hospital last week has since passed away. This patient had been admitted to hospital some weeks earlier in a critical condition and NDM-1 cannot be singled out as the cause of death,” she said.

A 10th patient with suspected NDM-1 was confirmed on Friday night and three patients are under strict surveillance in a quarantined ward at the hospital.

17th October 2011

2011-10-17T19:06:00.000+02:00

Teens arrested for cable theft

Four youths were arrested on Monday for stealing copper cables with an estimated street value of R10,000 near KwaMhlanga, Mpumalanga police said.

Police followed leads and caught them at their homes in Tweefontein A around 7am, Warrant Officer Max Mahlangu said.

He said the cables had been cut from street poles in the village on Friday morning. Parts of the village had since been plunged into darkness.

Bus passengers travelling to Pretoria tipped off the police when the four teenagers boarded with two bags filled with cables on Friday morning.

“Police staged a road block in one of the streets ahead, but the cable thieves jumped out and ran away. Their bags were confiscated.”

The teens, aged between 18 and 19, were expected to face a charge of cable theft in the KwaMhlanga Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

16th October 2011

2011-10-16T19:45:00.002+02:00

This nation must protect its children

The grief of the two mothers is shared by too many parents throughout South Africa who have lost their children in brutal and devastating ways.
Children in our society frequently have to bear the brunt of violence. Newspapers are filled with reports of women who murder their offspring, fathers who rape their daughters, strangers who rape children, hired killers who murder infants for body parts, serial rapists and killers who target teenagers, traffickers who sell children to pimps and for labour, fathers who murder their families. Many more children are forced to witness violence, or are physically abused or neglected.
This is a terrifying world in which to raise children.

15th October 2011

2011-10-14T18:37:00.000+02:00

‘This is not truly who I am’: Facebook rapist

Durban magistrate Sharon Marks gave him 15 years' imprisonment for each of the two counts of rape.

He was sentenced to another 15 years, with five years suspended, for each of the two counts of armed robbery with aggravating circumstances. On Wednesday, Bester pleaded guilty to all four charges.

He burst into tears in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday when he explained the circumstances which he said led him to commit his crimes.

Speaking in mitigation of his sentence, he told the court he had been raped by his grandmother’s friend when he was young, raped several times by a man who promised to look after him, and that he was gang-raped in prison.

He said he had never seen his parents and that he lived under excruciating conditions with his alcoholic grandmother and grandfather on a farm in Gauteng.

He said he was raped by his grandmother's friend, and that when he told his grandmother about the abuse, it was like talking to a wall.

“My grandmother’s friend hurt me when he raped me, and I had an operation on my behind.”

The situation became worse when his grandmother died, and he had to live with his friends in a squatter camp. While living there he was approached by a man who promised to look after him, but who had then locked him in his house for days and raped him.

Bester told the court the difficulties he encountered forced him to commit crime

13th October 2011 & 14th October 2011

2011-10-13T22:26:00.004+02:00

Rhino shot 11 times

A rhino survived after being shot 11 times on a Limpopo farm, according to a report on Thursday.

Gaven Holden-Smith, of an on independent anti-poaching unit in the Waterberg area, told Beeld newspaper that the young cow was found on Wednesday on a farm between Bela-Bela and Thabazimbi.

The rhino was being treated to avoid infections and would probably be moved to another farm in the area which was believed to be safer, Holden-Smith said.

Since January, a total of 324 rhinos had been poached and more than 180 people arrested in connection with rhino poaching. This figure included two white rhino killed by poachers in the Kruger National Park on Tuesday.

Appeal for World Food Day
October 14 2011 at 01:11pm
By Daily News Reporter

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INLSA

FoodBank SA Durban branch warehouse supervisor Bongani Bukhosini and driver Pretty Mtabela pack boxes of food donated for distribution to the needy. Picture: Marilyn Bernard

14th October 2011

A call has been made to the public to support World Food Day by making a donation to a fund that could potentially save the lives of hungry people.

Almost 11 million South Africans, or 20 percent, do not know where their next meal will come from. The non-profit company FoodBank SA has created a national food banking network to address this.

Patrick Andries, general manager of FoodBank, said: “There’s no quicker or easier way to help those in need. Fighting hunger is also an extremely effective way to reduce crime, unemployment, ill health and poor education.”

12th October 2011

2011-10-12T22:00:00.001+02:00

This one made me laugh, nice to have a lighthearted story now and again.....

‘Buck Norris’ an internet sensation

A KwaZulu-Natal mountain biker became an internet sensation after a video of him being pounced on by charging hartebees received nearly five million views on YouTube, since it was posted there on Monday.

Evan van der Spuy, 17, was taking part in a mountain bike race near Pietermaritzburg on Sunday when the 150kg hartebees tried to jump over him.

“It was a freak accident. I knew the buckhad rushed up to me, but I can't remember what happened after that,” Beeld newspaper quoted him saying on Wednesday.

Van der Spuy's teammate, Travis Walker, was behind him, filming with a camera mounted on his handlebars, when the hartebees jumped.

The video was broadcast in the United States through ABC and CNN news, and was posted on the Huffington Post website. In Britain, it made The Telegraph website. The Mirror tweeted a link to the video with a hashtag calling Van der Spuy “Buck Norris”.

11th October 2011

2011-10-11T21:21:00.000+02:00

School bans ‘inappropriate’ touching

A Cape primary school has not exactly banned hugging - but says it wants to crack down on inappropriate touching between pupils.

A Western Cape primary school has not exactly banned hugging – but says it wants to crack down on inappropriate touching between pupils.

Media reports had it that Wolraad Woltemade Primary in Bothasig had banned hugging for pupils in Grades 5, 6 and 7 because they were using hugs to touch each other inappropriately.

It was reported that ball games had also been banned because they led to pupils fighting.

School principal Elaine Kesten referred all queries to Bronagh Casey, spokeswoman for the Western Cape Education Department. She told the Cape Timeson Monday that hugging had not been banned.

“The school has just enforced the rules of the school’s code of conduct – namely that ‘learners will not behave in an improper, unbecoming or disgraceful manner’. Learners innocently hugging one another have not been ‘banned’. The school simply wants to avoid inappropriate touching.”

The school governing body had decided it was necessary to monitor pupils’ hugging when staff had noticed pupils were touching each other inappropriately while they embraced

10th October 2011

2011-10-10T21:46:00.000+02:00

Had a lovely day and evening, Paris' 13th birthday, can't believe its been 13 years...had a family braai, decor by Paris, much fun was had by all.

Crowd gathers ahead of ET trial

Scores of police officers and journalists gathered outside the High Court in Ventersdorp on Monday ahead of the appearance of the pair accused of hacking AWB leader Eugene Terre'Blanche to death.

Cameramen and photographers set up their equipment and uniformed Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) members milled around a gazebo listening to Afrikaans music playing on a speaker.

On trees around the court, AWB supporters had hung posters in the party's colours. Some of them had slogans reading: “Die boer is hier om te bly (The 'boer' is here to stay)” and “Ons boere Afrikaner BLOED (Our 'boere' Afrikaner bleed).” The latter was written next to a picture of a politician with blood on his hands.

9th October 2011

2011-10-09T18:08:00.000+02:00

Been making cup cakes all afternoon, was a big laugh....needed a laugh after a night of tears, I'm bloody sick of crying over men, no more no more. My life is painting now. I don't want to cry anymore.

Unlucky Boks out of World Cup

Wellington – Australia knocked defending champions South Africa out of the rugby World Cup when they edged the Springboks 11-9 in a bruising but undistinguished quarter-final at the Wellington Rugby Stadium on Sunday.

South Africa, fielding their most experienced side in history, dominated possession and territory but could not land the killer blow against the twice champions in a match riddled with basic kicking and handling errors.

Australia captain James Horwill scored the only try of the match in the 12th minute to help the Wallabies to an 8-3 lead at halftime.

8th October 2011

2011-10-08T20:53:00.000+02:00

Frightening to think there are 13 year olds lying drunk in alleys, my daughter turns 13 on Monday.

Cops to curb teen drinking

Drunk under-18s should be detained until their parents come and collect them.

That’s what Durban North Councillor Heinz de Boer would like to see after a police raid on pubs and clubs in Durban North and Umhlanga last weekend.

De Boer, who joined the raid, said he was disgusted to see a 13-year-old girl passed out in a pool of vomit in an alley and was determined to crack down on under-age drinking, as the annual matric “rage” and festive season approaches.

“We saw a lot of under-age kids hanging around, with many under-age girls walking the street and dressed in a very provocative manner,” said De Boer.

He said it appeared to be common practice for teens to be given R500 by their parents to go out for the night, where alcopops and shooters were popular choices of drink.

And having alerted the public last week to a shocking trend of young men in Durban being raped after a night out, Rape Wise Chief Executive Officer John Buswell said the “16 Shooters” game – when a teen turning 16 has to consume 16 shots of alcohol – was common practice

7th October 2011

2011-10-07T22:14:00.001+02:00

Child sold for R500 is found

Ovayo Maxetuka has been found after allegedly being sold to a child trafficking syndicate by his grandmother.

A toddler who was allegedly sold to a child trafficking syndicate was found on Friday afternoon at a house in Kraaifontein in Cape Town, police said.

The one-year-old boy, Ovayo Maxetuka from Khayelitsha, was found after police received an anonymous phone call on his whereabouts, said Warrant Officer November Filander.

The boy was in the care of the alleged trafficker's neighbour, said Filander.

“The 41-year-old woman later handed herself over to police at the Kraaifontein police station,” he said.

“She will appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrate's Court on Monday, on charges of child trafficking.”

Ovayo was last seen on Tuesday. The child's 18-year-old mother discovered he was missing when she returned home from visiting family in Philippi.

She received information that her child had been sold by her mother and a neighbour to a woman believed to be involved in child trafficking.

6th October 2011

2011-10-06T19:58:00.000+02:00

Weight pulling: cool or cruel?

An animal welfare organisation says weight pulling for pit bulls is a growing trend no less morally reprehensible than using the dogs to fight each other.

Weight pulling as a sport for pit bulls is a growing trend, with the dogs pulling as much as 5.5 tons.

The sport, often the main attraction at pit bull shows, has been around for some time, but animal welfare experts say it is becoming more popular. It is also considered more acceptable than dog fighting.

Usually, weight training is used to build stamina and make dogs more powerful for fights. But weight training has now become a sport in itself – with events taking place at least once a month around the country.

An animal welfare organisation, which cannot be named to protect its staff, submitted a 50-page report to the director of public prosecutions calling for stronger prosecution for people in conflict with the Animals Protection Act.

At one show in July, a dog had to pull 5.5 tons of concrete slabs on a trolley. The event had to be stopped when the trolley was no longer secure.

At a previous show, the same dog only managed to pull 1 180kg while another dog pulled 5 700kg.

5th October 2011

2011-10-05T21:33:00.000+02:00

Tired night night

Malema admitted to hospital

to a private hospital in Polokwane, the SABC reported on Wednesday.

He was suffering from “flu symptoms”, said the broadcaster.

Malema briefed his lawyers and said he would not be attending his African National Congress disciplinary hearing in Johannesburg on Thursday.

Malema, league spokesman Floyd Shivambu, secretary general Sindiso Magaqa, deputy president Ronald Lamola, treasurer general Pule Mabe, and deputy secretary general Kenetswe Mosenogi face several charges. These were brought after comments the ANCYL would help bring about regime change in Botswana.

4th October 2011

2011-10-04T19:55:00.000+02:00

Another pretty crappy day, trying to fathom people. Guess I been doing that since 5.36 last Wednesday.............

This is the darkest day - Tutu centre

The Dalai Lama's cancellation on Tuesday of his trip to South Africa was a “dark day”, the Desmond Tutu Peace Centre said. “He said he feels it is clearly inconvenient for the government,” the centre's spokeswoman Nomfundo Wazala said. “I do not even have the words to say how sad I feel. This is the darkest day. Our officials felt it was not even important to respond to his application.”

The Dalai Lama applied for a visa to South Africa in August to attend the birthday celebrations of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, a friend and fellow Nobel Peace Prize winner, on Friday.

But on Monday, the South African government had yet to announce a decision, prompting speculation it would refuse him entry for fear of offending China.

AFP reported on Tuesday that he had cancelled his trip.

It quoted the Dalai Lama's office in India as saying: “His Holiness was to depart for South Africa on October 6, 2011 but visas have not been granted yet.”

3rd October 2011

2011-10-03T19:13:00.002+02:00

Watched the cellphone video, my favourite part, when the dad says yo yo yo yo yo.....funny

Tornado flattens Free State homes

Hundreds of Free State families have been left homeless, 42 people injured and a nine-year-old boy is dead after a tornado ripped through the north-eastern sections of the country on Sunday.

The storm – attributed to an extreme thunderstorm system – tore through the Free State town of Ficksburg on Sunday afternoon.

In Springs, Gauteng, a similar wind system struck, terrifying residents, who inundated the South African Weather Service with alerts about the storm.

By late on Sunday night the South African Weather Service website was still carrying storm warning “flashes” of severe thunderstorms in the North West Province, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the north-eastern sections of the Free State.

2nd October 2011

2011-10-02T18:59:00.002+02:00

Facebook rapist’ hits Cape Town

Police believe the “Facebook rapist” is in Cape Town or on his way here.

The man, who has about 13 aliases, has made several appointments with women in the city over the past few days and he is believed to be using a new alias - Marius Botes.

He is alleged to have raped one woman in Umhlanga, and he is also wanted in connection with the murder last week of Nomfundu Tyolo, from Honeydew, Johannesburg, in a Milnerton B&B.

He most frequently uses the name Thomas Bester. He is known for telling young, beautiful women that he can secure them jobs in the modelling industry and then swindles them out of cellphones, laptops and cash.

1st October 2011

2011-10-01T20:32:00.000+02:00

SANDF parachutists hurt during airshow

Fourteen parachutists were injured during a mass jump at an airshow at the Waterkloof Air Force Base on Saturday, the SA National Defence Force said.

“It was a freak accident and we don't know what caused it,” spokesman Colonel Petrus Motlhabane said in a statement.

He said four of the parachutists were seriously injured and were airlifted to 1 Military Hospital where their conditions were stable.

Ten others suffered minor injuries and were also taken to hospital.

30th september 2011

2011-09-30T17:35:00.000+02:00

Friday night, really?

KZN’s ‘horror’ factories exposed

Life-threatening and un- hygienic working conditions and flagrant disregard for the law put Newcastle’s clothing industry under the spotlight again when officials inspected 12 of the area’s “worst” factories on Thursday.

The inspections, sparked by numerous complaints from the South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (Sactwu), found gross violations with the basic conditions of employment, health and safety measures, as well as employment equity standards, said Jay Anand, communications manager for the department of labour.

Abey Rasepae, provincial control inspector for the department in KwaZulu-Natal said: “Some of the contra- ventions included emergency exits not being demarcated, no electrical certificates available for electrical installations and no soap or toilet paper being placed in toilets.

In one instance it was found that only one toilet was shared by almost 60 male and female employees.”

29th Spetember 2011

2011-09-29T19:48:00.000+02:00

Did I say almost nothing can make me sad after yesterday.....mmmm how wrong can one be?

Pinetown accident injures 11

A collission between a minibus-taxi and a car on Thursday, has left 11 people with injuries.

According to ER24 spokeswoman Vanessa Jackson, the accident took place on Richmond Road in the Pinetown area, KZN.

She said when paramedics arrived at the scene, they found the taxi lying on its passenger side, on the roadway.

Eleven occupants of the taxi managed to climb from the wreckage, and most of them were found walking around the damaged vehicle, she said.

“Three people were complaining of severe back and neck pain, and after assessment were found to have suffered multiple other injuries in the form of deep cuts and bruises to their bodies.” She said the injured were placed on back stabilising boards, and taken to a nearby hospital for further treatment.

28th September 2011

2011-09-28T19:52:00.000+02:00

Can't resist a shark story...am happy today, happy happy happy..Almost nothing can rain on my parade..........

Shark severs swimmer's leg

Shark spotters at Fish Hoek had raised the alert that a shark was in the vicinity and the beach was closed.

A man is in a critical condition after being attacked by a shark at Clovelly Corner, Fish Hoek, on Wednesday, the City of Cape Town said.

A great white struck just after midday when the man was swimming, severing his lower right leg, spokesman Gregg Oelofse said in a statement.

He was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition.

Earlier in the day, shark spotters raised the alert that a shark was in the vicinity and the beach was closed. When the man went swimming, the white shark-alert flag was still displayed and the beach was still closed, Oelofse said.

Shark spotters saw the man enter the water, and frantically ran to alert him, but did not reach him in time.

27th September 2011

2011-09-27T18:38:00.002+02:00

Domestic worker ‘abused’ at prison home

A domestic worker claims she was called a k***** and a bitch by her employer, who then forced her to sleep in a laundry, locked her out when she entertained guests and pulled her by the ears.

On Monday, Ellen Molehane quit her job after only two months of working for Rina Burger.

Burger and her family live in a house at the Johannesburg Prison, where Burger’s husband is a prison warder.

Asked to respond to the allegations on Monday, Burger yelled: “What? What?” Then she slammed down the phone and did not take any further calls.

The Star has obtained a sound clip of the alleged racial abuse. In it, a female voice can be heard ranting in Afrikaans: “Jou moer… jou bliksem… moenie k** praat nie” (Get lost, you bastard, don’t speak s***).

Molehane said she had been excited when she received a phone call from Burger in August offering her the job. Burger had been referred to Molehane by another domestic worker. Molehane immediately made the 430km journey from her home in Pampierstad, near Taung, North West, to Joburg to start work on August 4.

But, claims Molehane, the verbal abuse started within days of her arrival. “Whenever she returned from work, she would scream and swear at me. She called me ‘k*****’ and ‘bitch’ and ‘jou ma se p***’,” Molehane recalled.

26th September 2011

2011-09-26T19:50:00.002+02:00

Winnie at 75: ‘the epitome of ubuntu’

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela was named as the first woman recipient of the Ubuntu Honour on Monday – her 75th birthday – at an event attended by her neighbours in Soweto.

Madikizela-Mandela, who arrived at the Mandela house in Vilakazi Street hobbling on purple crutches that matched her outfit, was all smiles as she greeted the neighbours who had gathered there.

National Heritage Council chief executive advocate Sonwabile Mancotywa said the honour was bestowed on global personalities whose lives epitomised an expression of the values of ubuntu.

25th September 2011

2011-09-25T18:09:00.002+02:00

Limpopo's lecherous lecturers

The University of Limpopo has been rocked by claims that lecturers are offering female students marks in exchange for sex.

The revelations surfaced during a probe into the institution by a panel of senior academics appointed by the Council on Higher Education.
Students told panel members - who interviewed 337 people, including members of the council and vice-chancellor Professor Mahlo Mokgalong - of the "prevalence and pervasiveness of sexual harassment and sexist behaviour" on campus.
In its report, the panel said it was particularly worrying that cases of "sex for marks" might be taking place, with lecturers victimising female students who refused them sexual favours.
It warned that the situation was unacceptable and recommended that the allegations be investigated urgently.

24th September 2011

2011-09-24T13:52:00.002+02:00

JHB tennis mom to sue Bob Hewitt

The Johannesburg mother of another of Bob Hewitt's alleged victims wants to sue the former tennis star for molesting her daughter more than 20 years ago - even though he is over 70 and in bad health.

The woman, whose name is known to The Independent on Saturday, said she had been one of 20 mothers living in the Bedfordview, Kempton Park, Edenvale and nearby areas who

confronted Hewitt when they discovered behavioural changes in their daughters, who were all 12 at the time.

He had been their tennis coach at the time.

“He had a massive property in Bedfordview then and he used to coach our children. But I started noticing a change in my daughter, and that was when she told me what was going on with Hewitt. It was 20 of us parents eventually who got together because we were all experiencing the same thing. It was then that we discovered what he was doing to our girls.

“Before we confronted him, some of us went to the coaching sessions and you could actually see him do it. You could see him fondle their breasts while he stood behind them and taught them how to hold their racquet properly.”

23th September 2011

2011-09-23T21:33:00.000+02:00

‘Most Schubart Park families co-operative’

had been registered for relocation by Friday afternoon as evacuations from the Pretoria building continued.

“Most tenants are co-operative. It actually came as a surprise,” said City of Tshwane spokeswoman Dikeledi Phiri.

Those who had registered had been allowed to go into the complex to collect their belongings.

“There is a strong presence of Tshwane metro police and SA Police Service members to ensure that all residents are evacuated without causing any disruption in the inner city,” she said.

Residents of Schubart Park were to be relocated to Atteridgeville and Salvokop, west of Pretoria, because the building had been declared unsafe.

A group of residents protested on Wednesday, saying they had had no water or electricity for two weeks. Tyres were burnt inside the building, residents threw bricks and bottles onto the streets and a mobile toilet and car parked outside were set alight.

Police arrested 79 people for public violence during the protests.

22nd September 2011

2011-09-23T05:59:00.001+02:00

OOOps misssed last night, wasn't feeling too well, went to bed early. Lifes stressses sometimes a little overwhelming.

Is burnt body Lolly’s lawyer?

A charred body discovered on an overturned vehicle on fire on Tuesday night is believed to be that of Ian Jordaan, the lawyer of the late Lolly Jackson, a report has said.

According to The Star newspaper, while police could not confirm the identity of the man at the time of going to print, they said the burnt bakkie found at about 9pm on the Broederstroom Road near Hekpoort on the West Rand belonged to Jordaan, 55.

Provincial police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Lungelo Dlamini said detectives were still waiting for dental records to confirm the identity of the dead man.

Several media reports on Thursday morning said Jordaan had allegedly been kidnapped from his office after being lured to a meeting.

He was then reportedly murdered after transferring R1.8 million from his own trust fund to another unidentified account.

However, not one source of this information was willing to be publicly identified, or to speak on record about the crime.