Police are investigating a murder after the body of a 25-year-old woman was discovered near Zamani Primary School in Tweefontein, Mpumalanga, over the weekend.

According to police, members of the public discovered the gruesome scene on Saturday and alerted police.

“Police rushed to the scene and upon arrival, they discovered a lifeless and half naked body of a 25-year-old woman lying on the ground with some body parts missing,” police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said in a statement.

The woman, who has since been identified as Sphiwe Mtshweni, had multiple stab wounds.

A murder case has been opened and police are looking for an unknown number of suspects.

Body found in dam

In an unrelated matter, police in Emzinoni have made a breakthrough in the murder of Mapule Jaquiline Thekiso, 48, whose body was found floating in a dam in Mzinoni on November 17.

Rudolph Ngwenya, 28, was later arrested near Hazyview for the possession of a motor vehicle which belonged to Thekiso. He has since been connected to her murder as well, Hlathi said.

He made his first appearance in the Bethal Magistrate’s Court on December 24, where the matter was postponed to January 7, 2020.

Mpumalanga police commissioner Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma has strongly condemned the recent spate of murders of women and appealed to members of the community to assist with information that may lead to the arrest of Mtshweni’s killers.

“I am disturbed by the heartless killing of women in this province. It is of paramount importance that people should talk if they have differences [rather] than killing each other,” Zuma said.

Pitbull terrier Justice is used to the rough life roaming the streets looking for something to eat, but little did he expect that a group of children would throw a lit cracker at him to trick him into thinking it is food.

Sniffing around for food in Lotus River, Cape Town, he thought somebody had tossed him a snack. But when he picked it up, it exploded in his mouth, leaving him with severe injuries.

Belinda Abraham, the spokesperson for Cape of Good Hope SPCA, said a Good Samaritan had called for help on Friday and the severely injured dog was taken in for urgent treatment.

‘He has burns and lacerations’

She added field officer Sonwabo Sitole and Inspector Jeffery Mfini’s hearts broke when they responded to the call.

“He has burns and lacerations to the inside of his mouth and he has been unable to eat until this morning,” said Abraham on Monday.

The team was told Justice had lived off scraps put out for him by some residents, and judging by old scars, it seemed he had not experienced much kindness.

His body showed the scars of old injuries. His mouth was so severely injured he had to be fed intravenously and put on a course of antibiotics and pain medication.

Abraham was shocked that children could be so callous.

Guilty of cruelty to animals

She said being found guilty of cruelty to animals could lead to a prison sentence ranging between three and 15 years and fines that range from R60 000 to R300 000, depending on which court deals with the case.

Abraham asked anybody who had any information about the attack or witnessed any cruelty to animals should call the organisation on 021 700 4158 or 083 326 1604.

The Pretoria Zoo has bid a sad farewell to 26-year-old black rhino Mbani who died on Monday morning.

The zoo shared the news in a statement on the National Zoological Garden’s Facebook page.

“Mbani died from an acute case of cholic that struck him down this morning. It did not appear to be a chronic condition,” it shared.”The zoo’s veterinarians were with him at the time of his death and did all they could to assist him”.

Mbani was born in 1993 and became a resident of the zoo in 1998.

“At 26 years he will be sorely missed,” the zoo said.

Visitors also expressed their condolences for Mbani, sharing memories of when he was a calf.

One person commented: “We’ll miss him. I still remember when he was small playing with a ball and made everyone laugh because he was so cute. RIP, boy, you were just a year older than me, but I will cherish the times I saw you each time when I went there to look at you.”

Another commended the efforts of the zookeepers: “A loss for the team who were so dedicated to his well-being.”

According to the World Wildlife Fund, black rhinos are critically endangered due to poaching, with the number of rhinos thought to be between 5 042 and 5 455.