He was delusional, violent and apparently assaulted a woman before community members tied him up and eventually let him go, only for him to allegedly murder his mother the very next day.
KwaNobuhle residents believe Nozipho Tshem, 72, would still be alive had the police showed up to arrest her son Siya, 26, when he allegedly assaulted a neighbour on Saturday night.
Siya fled after his mother’s murder on Sunday night and died hours later when he was hit by a car.
In turn, the police have taken the community’s allegations of inability, or unwillingness, to assist them to heart, saying an urgent investigation would be launched into what exactly transpired in the hours leading to the Tshems’ deaths.
Neighbours of the Mondile Road residence, where the brutal murder took place, painted a violent and disturbing picture of the weekend’s events that started with a funeral weeks before and ended in a family tragedy.
Nozipho came to KwaNobuhle with her son earlier in February for her daughter’s funeral, which was held about two weeks ago.
They decided to stay on with other family members after the funeral.
Speaking on behalf of the residents, community leaders the Rev Tamsanqa Nkevu and Siya Nkamanda described Siya as a known drug user and shed light on how the tragic weekend unfolded.
“The trouble started on Saturday night,” Nkevu said.
“He came to the house in Mondile Road and started shouting strange things and accusing his mother of nonsensical things.
“He was clearly delusional and no-one understood where the anger towards his mother came from.
“Around 9pm, a neighbour arrived and tried to talk some sense into him, but he [allegedl] grabbed her and tried to strangle her.
“Her screams alerted the neighbours, who came to restrain Siya and tied him up.”
According to neighbours, who did not want to be identified, they notified the police of the alleged assault but no-one came to investigate, even after three women said they had walked to the police station at about 11pm.
Later the next morning, when Siya had calmed down and begged to be released, he was untied and left the house.
But when he returned late on Sunday evening an argument with his mother ensued and he allegedly beat her to death with a hammer before fleeing.
Police responded to the murder scene at about 2am on Monday and were still at the house when they received reports that Siya had been killed after being knocked over by a car.
A motorist reported to the police station at about 4.30am that he had hit someone in Matanzima Street and police established that it was Tshem.
A case of culpable homicide is under investigation.
Friends and family members sitting outside the Mondile Road house on Tuesday declined to comment.
Nkamanda said the incident highlighted an ongoing concern in the KwaNobuhle community — the police’s unwillingness to respond to crime scenes and do proper investigations.
“Either they claim they do not have vehicles, or they just ignore requests for assistance,” he said.
“They are forcing the community to take matters into their own hands, which is unacceptable.”
Nkevu said some residents were calling for the closure of the police station, while others wanted the officers stationed there replaced with more competent and willing staff.
Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said it was unclear what exactly transpired at the house in Mondile Road, but the residents had made serious allegations against the police that would have to be investigated thoroughly.
“To date, no cases of assault have been opened in relation to the neighbour’s allegation of assault.
“An internal investigation is being [carried out] relating to the allegation of non-attendance by police to an earlier incident at the house in Mondile Road,” Naidu said.
“There are sufficient manpower and vehicles to effectively serve the community of KwaNobuhle.”
In response to some residents claiming threats from the police and voicing fears of victimisation, Naidu said such alleged actions by police officers should be reported.
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