Residents from Boitumelong in the North West are reeling in shock after a 16-year-old allegedly admitted to his pastor that he killed a 4-year-old girl.
Johannesburg – The community of Boitumelong in North West has been plunged into disbelief after a 16-year-old was charged with the murder of a 4-year-old girl.
The cause of the child’s death is not yet known and though there are no suspicions she was sexually violated, police are waiting for a post-mortem report that will reveal how the child died.
North West police spokesperson Brigadier Sabata Mokgwabone said the child was reported missing on Sunday.
He said the she had last been seen playing with other children outside the yard at her parents home.
Later, he said, it was reported she had been seen in the company of a male along the N12 in the evening.
“The following day around 10am the 16-year-old went to his pastor and admitted to him that he was the one who killed the girl.
“The pastor then took him to the police station and officers, together with the teenager and the pastor, went to where he said the body was.
“The body was the found in the bushes in Boitumelo,” he said.
It’s not yet known what caused the teen to approach the pastor and admit to the crime.
Mokgwabone said the two were not related but lived in the same area. He said the fact the teenager told the pastor he killed the child was not a confession.
“It’s an admission, not a formal confession.”
The teen has been charged with murder and appeared in the Bloemhof Magistrates’ Court.
Mokgwabone said the teen was placed in a place of safety and would return to court on October 14.
In the meantime, he was being processed under the Child Justice Act which included consultations with a social worker.
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