A 41-year-old mother burnt her own son’s hand for eating food from a neighbour's house.
By Thendo Priscilla Mudzuli
Police in the Vhembe district have arrested a 41-year-old woman for burning her son as punishment for eating next door. The woman was arrested on Tuesday after the principal at a local primary school saw the wounds on the child’s hand. It is alleged that the mother switched on a stove and commanded her 7 years old to put his hand on the burning stove. The incident happened on Saturday evening.
The school principal Azwifaneli Silayi said that they realised that the boy didn’t come to school on Monday. On Tuesday when the boy came to school, he realised that the boy was injured, and his right hand was swollen and having open wounds inside and outside.
He then decided to notify the police because the boy told him that his mother burnt him because he ate food at his friend’s home.
“We had to call the police because the matter was beyond our control,” said Silai. The boy was rushed to Siloam Hospital for medical examination, and he got admitted.
The police came and they immediately opened a case docket and arrested the mother. “We received a call on Tuesday morning, reporting the incident. We had to rush to the school and attend the matter,” said police spokesperson sergeant Olga Tshikalaha. The mother appeared to Dzanani magistrate court on Wednesday 06 March and the case was postponed to 15 April for further investigations.
