A chilling murder in Limpopo has led to a manhunt across borders, as police search for a husband suspected of fatally shooting his wife multiple times before fleeing to Zimbabwe seeking spiritual assistance.
The brutal killing of a 29-year-old woman has sent shockwaves through the community and highlighted the desperate measures some take in the face of tragedy.
The incident began to unravel on 20 January 2025, when Musina police received a tip-off from a vehicle tracking company about a white Ford Ranger, registered in Limpopo, parked at a residence in Campbell. The vehicle’s owner had been reported missing since Friday, 17 January, prompting a missing person’s case registered at the Moroka police station in Gauteng.
Limpopo provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, detailed the initial discovery: “Police rushed to the scene and found the vehicle at the residence. The owner (of the house) explained that he had kept the bakkie in his yard with permission from the male owner, who had borrowed a large amount of cash and indicated he intended to cross the border to Zimbabwe for spiritual assistance due to issues at his workplace.”
However, further investigation revealed a far more sinister story. Police found bloodstains inside the vehicle, along with damning evidence: two empty rifle cartridges, three empty 9mm pistol cartridges, a fragment of 9mm ammunition, six live 9mm rounds, two black 9mm pistol magazines (one with 15 rounds, one empty), and a pair of black gloves.
A 24-year-old man, believed to be an accomplice, was arrested in Tshamutumbu in the early hours of Wednesday. He was found in possession of two firearms, including a hunting rifle and ammunition, following an intelligence-led operation. At this point, both the vehicle owner and his wife remained missing.
The grim discovery came on Wednesday night: the body of the 29-year-old woman was found in bushes along the N1 in Kromdraai, Free State. She had suffered multiple gunshot wounds.
Colonel Ledwaba explained: “Preliminary investigation revealed that the husband, who was supposed to be travelling with the deceased, passed the Verkeerdeveli toll gate alone in the same bakkie on January 17. It was at the turn-off in Kromdraai where the woman’s body was discovered.”
The shocking revelation has prompted strong condemnation from Limpopo’s provincial commissioner of police, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, who described the killing as a “senseless shooting.”
Police are now urgently seeking the deceased woman’s husband, Dakalo Nemangwele, 34, believing he can provide crucial information. They have issued a public appeal: “Anyone with information that may assist in tracing the deceased’s husband, should contact Lieutenant Colonel Shuhani Rendani, on cellphone number 082 414 6683, Crime Stop at 08600 1011, or via the MySAPSApp.”
The investigation is ongoing, and the search for Nemangwele extends across the border to Zimbabwe, where he reportedly sought the counsel of a powerful sangoma.
