The newspaper reported that four-year-old Lukhanyo Mtshengu was bundled into a red Toyota Corolla around 9am on Tuesday on Idada Avenue in Khayelitsha.

Onlookers took down the car registration and alerted the police. The men were found and brought back to the area, where they were met by an angry mob.

The boy's aunt Lungiswa Mtshengu, 24, said the men were asked why they had taken the child.

"One of the men admitted they were sent to get a child. But when they took the child to the sangoma they were told he was too dark and that he wanted a lighter-skinned child," she was quoted as saying.

"After discovering that Lukhanyo didn't meet their boss's standards, they dumped him about 500 metres away from where he was playing."

A resident discovered the naked boy holding his wet clothes on a street corner. He was eventually returned home.

Captain Frederick van Wyk said the men, aged 56, 42, and 24, were charged with kidnapping and were still in custody.

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Thu May 23 09:39:09 SAST 2013 ::

Sep 27, 2012

MommaC

"...wanted to sell his body parts for muti (herbal medicine)."

Okay Sowetan, are you really telling us that you believe that body parts grow out of the ground? Or are you saying that (as South Africans) you don't know the difference between a flippin inyanga and a baloi? You are supposed to be a newspaper with a largely black readership, at least get the damn terminology right.
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Sep 27, 2012

eGolibamqedengaphambili7

My god cry beloved South Africa. I think death penalty must be brought back so that our children can be safe on our streets. otherwise we will take the law to our hands this devils sons will be moeskont by us. rerig
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Sep 27, 2012

Mosquer

EE!!!! sowetan e tlakile ka human with muthi
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Sep 27, 2012

lindsay

wow and they still call these people sangomas i think south africa shouls steal some of Zimbabwe laws on witchcraft and then bring back death penalty, this witch even send goons to hunt children.
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Sep 27, 2012

lindsay

wow and they still call these people sangomas i think South Africa should borrow some of Zimbabwe laws on witchcraft and then bring back death penalty, this witch even send goons to hunt children.

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Sep 27, 2012

Papage

Please show us the pictures of these people, we must show them to our kids to be carefull next time.
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Sep 27, 2012

Pointman

This is blood chilling - casually picking up a kid to be butchered for "medicine". The kid is lucky the Sangoma was so finicky about skin colour.

@MommaC - Sowetan should tell us where to acquire or how to make herbal children.
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Sep 27, 2012

msizi

So the only reason the kid is still alive is because he is too dark ??!!

Black & Proud
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Sep 27, 2012

jnrb

F**king bunch of animals who will butcher a 4 year old child for muti!!!
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Sep 27, 2012

cornelius

No fu.ck this, excuse my language, this is horrendous and these practices must be stopped immediately. Own culture and religion is a constitutional right, but this barbaric criminality has no place in any age, any society. Find these witches, throw them in jail, and throw away the keys.
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