The police in Virginia are looking for the suspected kidnapper, rapist, and killer of five-year-old Karabo Sempe, whose body was later found in a river.
It is alleged that on 31 December 2023 at 20:28, Karabo’s mother left their Meloding home to visit a neighbour, leaving her husband to watch over their three children. He was sleeping at the time.
The mother kept checking on the children until approximately 23:35. Thereafter, her husband and one of their other children also made their way to the neighbour’s home. While they were away, an unknown person succeeded in persuading the remaining children to unlock and open the door. This individual, an unknown African male, then abducted Karabo. The police were informed and the search for Karabo was conducted with assistance from the Meloding community.
On 1 January, a passerby informed the police about a body inside the river, next to the Virginia Correctional Services facility, which was retrieved by the Welkom K9 Search and Rescue unit. They had found Karabo.
She only had on a red and black sweater top and was identified by Moeketsi Tshehlana, her uncle. The postmortem reports revealed that Karabo was raped and had sustained injuries to her head.
A case of abduction, rape, and murder was registered and the suspect is still at large.
Anyone with information that can help lead to the arrest of the suspect, can contact Det. Sgt Zwai Matshaya of Virginia Detective Services on 083-206-9287 or the Crime Stop number 08600-10111. Alternatively, they can share information on the MySAPS App anonymously.
