A love triangle gone wrong is believed to be behind the double murder of SA National Defence Force (SANDF) officials and the suicide of a taxi driver.
The tragic incident started on Friday when Edwin Letuka had an argument with a 47-year-old soldier and disarmed him of his firearm at his home at Ikageng, North West.
According to an insider, Letuka used a toy gun to threaten and disarm the 47-year-old soldier before forcing him to call his (Letuka) estranged girlfriend Joalane Maria Mofolo because he had been apparently struggling to get hold of her.
Letuka was apparently furious that Mofolo had moved on with her colleague Lungisani Sithole. “The 47-year-old, also a soldier, is a close mutual friend of both Mofolo and Letuka.
“He was accusing him of knowing what was going on with his girlfriend and demanded that he call her to his house,” he said.
He said Mofolo and the 47-year-old enjoyed a close friendship and Letuka knew that she would respond to his request. Things apparently took a tragic turn when Letuka encountered Mofolo, who arrived next to the Manifesto Lounge, a pub just a few metres from the 47-year-old's home.
She was in her VW Polo which was being driven by Sithole.
Letuka walked towards the car and shot Sithole twice before throwing him out of the car. He died at the scene.
Letuka then ordered the 47-year-old soldier to get into the back seat before driving off with him and Mofolo inside the car, leaving Sithole's lifeless body behind.
Police spokesperson Col Adéle Myburgh said the vehicle was traced by members of the flying squad on Saturday, leading to a high-speed chase.
“While chasing the vehicle, the driver of the Polo pointed at the police officers with his firearm, thus, prompting the members to fire a few shots.”
Myburgh said Letuka eventually stopped the car and shot himself in the head.
“Police also found the body of the 31-year-old woman (Mofolo) inside the vehicle in the front passenger seat with head injuries,” Myburgh said.
The source alleged that Letuka was abusive and this had caused Mofolo to move on. “This guy was abusive and at some point, she came to work with bruises. I think she had had enough and decided to move on,” the source said.
Sithole and Mofolo seemed to have got closer while attending an artillery course in Potchefstroom, which fuelled Letuka's anger even more.
Letuka had put up a series of sad posts about cheating, heartbreak and death on his Facebook wall just a few days before the incident. “At my funeral don’t cry, I’ve been dead inside for a long time and Ya’ll didn’t care,” one of the posts reads.
Another post read: “Cheating is the most disgusting, hurtful and disrespectful thing you could do to someone you say you love.”
Sithole’s mother Nobuhle Sithole told Sowetan that the family was devastated. Nobuhle travelled from KwaZulu-Natal to identify Sithole’s body.
“It breaks my heart that we can’t get answers because the person who did this is also dead. He can’t tell us why he killed Lungisani and the girl,” Nobuhle said.
Nobuhle said they were informed that the altercation happened because her son was caught up in a love triangle involving a female colleague and Letuka. “They say the fight was about a woman. This is what we were told but there’s no way of being sure,” she said.
Nobuhle described Sithole as a dedicated family man who adored his two daughters.
Police are investigating cases of kidnapping, robbery, double murder and an inquest.
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