Killings revive call for demolition of unoccupied flats

Soweto residents near the Dube Hostel want unoccupied flats at the hostel to be demolished after two bodies were found there yesterday.

The victims were shot execution-style in an area that resident Dorah Ngwenya said had become a "haven for criminals".

Ngwenya, who said bodies were regularly found in the dilapidated buildings, described what she had heard on Sunday night when a car pulled up and shots were fired.

"The engine was still running. I heard a woman begging to be freed before I heard four shots being fired and then the car took off in haste," Ngwenya said.

She said she was too scared to go out to investigate but was not surprised when police and a big crowd gathered there yesterday morning.

"We went to see what was happening and saw the two bodies - a man and a young female.

"It looks like they were executed because they were shot at close range.

"The woman was shot at the back of her head and the bullet came out through the forehead," Ngwenya said.

When the Sowetan team visited the scene yesterday, dry blood congealed on the ground while children played nearby.

The multimillion-rand hostel project was completed in 2011, but has been vandalised beyond recognition.

About 1800 low-cost housing units were built adjacent to the Dube Hostel. The hostel dwellers refused to move in, saying they could not afford to pay for the rental and services. They also prevented those who qualified from moving in.

Miriam Shivambo, another resident in the area, said despite the execution that happened there on Sunday, other people who were killed elsewhere were also dumped at the unused flats.

"There are people who use these flats as a dumping ground for dead bodies.

"They kill people in other parts of Soweto and dump their bodies here," Shivambo said.

Nkosinathi Dlamini, a hostel resident, said they were not shocked by the deaths.

"Every once in a while we come across bodies that have been dumped here. People often blame us and say we are behind the crime that happens in this part of the township, but that's not true."

Police spokesman Captain Philemon Khorombi confirmed the discovery of the bodies.

However, he said nobody had come forward to identify them.

"They have not been identified and we do not know how old they are.

"We are investigating two cases of murder and have not made any arrests as yet," Khorombi said.