'She had blood on her chest'

A neighbour of a woman who was doused with petrol and set alight, allegedly by her boyfriend, says the deceased ran down the corridor while engulfed in flames.

Maletsatsi Ngoashe testified in the Johannesburg regional court yesterday in the murder case of Mpho Thobane who allegedly doused his girlfriend Viwe Dlalingozi with petrol.

Thobane initially faced a charge of arson, but the state withdrew the charge after failing to link him to the fire.

Thobane allegedly burnt Dlalingozi in her Johannesburg flat after the couple had an argument on October 25 last year.

Ngoashe told the court that she heard the couple speaking loudly, but dismissed it as a gathering amongst a small group of friends.

Ngoashe told the court that after a few hours, there was a strange sound and smell, but she did not know where it came from.

"The sound went on for about 10 minutes, it sounded like a plastic was burning and it smelled like burning paint, so I jumped out of my bed and felt that the floor was hot.

"I rushed to the door and tried to listen to what was happening. As my ear touched the wall, I felt how hot it was," Ngoashe said.

She said while she was wondering what was burning, she heard a loud bang from her neighbour.

"Then I opened my door and saw Viwe running. She was on fire and she was screaming that nditshisiwe uMpho (Mpho has set me alight). I saw a huge flame coming from her flat and I followed her as she was running towards the stairs," she said.

"I followed her, but could not catch up. Her hair was falling off and she had blood on her chest, she was trying to take off her T-shirt, it was burnt and she was trying to remove it from her body, but couldn't."

Ngoashe testified that they were evacuated from the building after the security guard called the fire department.

She said she had not seen Thobane since earlier that evening when he stormed into her flat, asking her if he could use her phone as he did not have airtime on his.

Nthabiseng Thobejane, a nurse at Johannesburg Correctional Centre, told the court that Thobane had burn injuries that he claimed to have sustained after attempting to commit suicide.

She said these were recorded on a document known as a G335A, which is used to open a file for a prisoner/awaiting trial at the correctional centre's clinic.

The trial continues.