What first seemed to be a mob attack on a potential kidnapper, turned out to be a much more complex crime when the man who died after his vehicle was set alight in Parkwood, Cape Town, on Tuesday was identified as Abongile Mafalala.
Residents in the area alleged that the 30-year-old Mafalala, who was driving a Toyota Avanza, had tried to snatch a child in the area. Countless residents then came out, attacked the then-unidentified man and set him and his vehicle alight on the open field next to the M5.
In the investigation that followed, police had learned the identity of the victim and that he lived in Dunoon, near Bloubergstrand.
Also read: Parkwood ‘mob justice’ victim identified and suspected as innocent
Six people had since been arrested in connection with the alleged vigilante attack which led to Mafalala’s death, as reported by News24.
Grassy Park police station commander Dawood Laing confirmed the arrests on Thursday.
“Police are still busy searching for more suspects. The investigation is ongoing,” said Laing.
Mafalala was travelling with two other men in the car when they were attacked by an angry mob in Parkwood on Tuesday morning.
Two of the men managed to escape before the car was set alight.
Also read: Alleged child abductor murdered near the M5 in an act of ‘mob justice’
A police insider spoke to News24 on the condition of anonymity and said that more suspects were being arrested.
“Several more suspects are making their way to the station, at this stage we cannot confirm how many in total we will have. Currently, the investigation is at a very crucial stage,” said the official.
Deputy chairperson of the Grassy Park Community Policing Forum (CPF), Nicole Jacobus, welcomed the arrests.
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Picture: Abongile Mafalala / Facebook