Villagers accused 78-year-old woman of witchcraft, burn her house

A woman in South Africa was murdered for supposedly being a witch

It turned out her neighbors confused a piece of window putty for a child’s liver

Two people are being processed for the crime

After a group of Copesville, South Africa residents confused the window putty 78-year-old Adelina Mohlakoane had placed on one of the panes of her shack for a child’s liver, they decided to process the woman for being a witch.


The supposed witch to the left, and her husband, right, who was also attacked.
Mohlakoaneand her husband Dennis Khumalo were severely beaten and burning tires were thrown upon the roof of their home at the Mason informal settlement. She died as a product of the beating, and Khumalo is badly injured at the hospital.

Now two people between 28 and 39 are being indicted for the crime.


The woman's children outside their mother's burnt home.
Both Mohlakoaneand and Khumalo were accused of keeping body parts. Their daughter Qhamukile Memela said a tenant renting a room at her parents’ house was the one who started spreading the rumor. “It all started during the day on Sunday. Community members gathered outside confronting my family about witchcraft and the rumored human body parts inside the house,” she said.

A crowd apparently started to gather around the mud house, but was dispersed by police some time later that day. The body parts were never found after they searched the premises. What looked like a child’s liver was taken by police for testing, and they determined it was putty to repair windows.

Witnesses described some time later, they gathered again and threw the tires. Mohlakoane ran away from the burning house, they dragged her back, took her to the road, and started beating her.


The supposed liver which turned out to be putty.
Then, “around 5pm, they came chanting struggle songs and shouting ‘they must die’… They demolished the fence and started throwing things. A neighbour helped my mother to escape but unfortunately they found where she was hiding... My father also was brutally beaten. My mother died just like that. She was killed over rumours which are not even true,” said Albert Williams, the couple’s son.

A neighbor said “Gogo Adelina was a good person and she loved her family,” adding that her death was “inhuman behaviour and it’s not acceptable.”