The brutal killing of Thebe Mothibi, owner of the By Hoek Lounge and treasurer of the Mangaung Concerned Community (MCC) movement, has sparked outrage in the Mangaung Metro’s suburbs of Phahameng and Rocklands in Bloemfontein. The outrage was directed at Lesotho nationals and vendors selling fruit and vegetables.
Angry community members in the two residential areas shut down numerous stalls run by Lesotho nationals, venting Mothibi’s gruesome murder in the early morning yesterday – Sunday, 5 February. They were targeted when news went viral that the prime suspects connected the killing of the businessman originate from Lesotho.
A section of the Moshoeshoe Road, where Mothibi’s business is situated, was closed and traffic was directed to alternate routes. Angry residents barricaded the road using various debris – burning tyres and stones. In the event of tension later on in the day, members of the Public Order Policing (POP) unit were deployed to try and restore order.
The police used rubber bullets to try and disperse protesters who closed off the road, sitting with chairs in both lanes of the road.
Lt. Col Thabo Covane, spokesperson for the police in the Mangaung Metro, said Mothibi (46) was murdered while closing his outlet at about 01:05. He said the deceased was attacked after he had intervened in a fight that broke out at the lounge before the end of business. Covane said the three suspects arrested regarding Mothibi’s murder are foreign nationals. They are aged from 26, 30 and 33 years. The trio is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court tomorrow – Tuesday, 7 February.
