A security guard was found murdered at a school in Mpumalanga in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The education department said the lifeless body of Winias Mohlala, who was a guard at Skhila Secondary School in Lydenburg, was found in the vegetable garden with his hands tied behind his back with a piece of wire.

Provincial education spokesperson Jasper Zwane said a knife was found next to Mohlala’s body.

“It seems he was also physically assaulted. The school fence, windows and the main door were damaged. Computers, cellphones and tablets have been stolen. The school principal is still to compile a detailed list of stolen property with an estimated monetary value,” Zwane said.

Education MEC Bonakele Majuba expressed his concern about the violence against guards at the province's schools, as well as other acts of violence linked to schools in Mpumalanga.

“The murder of the school security guard was not the first brutal incident to take place in our province. On Friday, two learners from Mkhulu Secondary School in Doornkop were stabbed by a gang of marauding boys in a scholar transport. It was established that the learners were from a nearby school. The learners were rushed to hospital with serious injuries,” Majuba said.

Majuba said no arrests had been made in both incidents and he requested anyone with information to assist the police catch the culprits.

Provincial police spokesperson Brig Leonard Hlathi confirmed that the police were investigating cases of murder and attempted murder regarding the two incidents.