Overview
- Police opened a murder case after 15-year-old Xilaveko Suke was found on December 25 inside a one-room house at her father’s Rotterdam Village property with a visible stab wound and signs of partial decomposition.
- Officers later attended a blaze at the same property on December 25 in the evening, with an arson inquiry now underway.
- On December 26, the body of her father, 45-year-old Peter Themba Baloyi, was discovered hanging in nearby bushes, prompting an inquest into his death.
- Both the teenager and her father had been reported missing earlier in the week after leaving home together, according to police and family reports.
- SAPS named Colonel Malesela Ledwaba as the spokesperson and identified Captain Walter Marivate as the investigating officer, with information sought via Crime Stop, the MySaps app, or local stations.