He approached two sangomas at a river and asked that they cleanse him. The man also confessed that he had killed the mother of his two children, but what he did not know was that the two women were working in law enforcement. One of the healers, a traffic officer, and the other, a community safety officer were praying at a river in New Canada near Noordgesig in Soweto when they were approached by the alleged killer. 

A family friend and neighbor gogo Magdeline Khule detailed to ZiMoja the grim discovery of Nqobile Kumalo's decapitated boy in the flat she shared with her boyfriend and the father of her children. Gogo Khule said she last saw the couple together on Thursday when they came back from grocery shopping after collecting their children's Sassa grants. She says the suspect came to her flat three times on Saturday morning but Nqobile was nowhere to be seen. "Firstly, he came to my flat, stared at me without saying a word and when I asked what could be the problem he just left. Shortly after that, he came back with his kids whom I normally tend and asked me to look after them. I told him I couldn't because I was tired but he pushed them right into my arms until I gave in," she said. She added that as she was sitting with the kids the same morning, two police officers followed by the suspect and two sangomas walked in. "I yelled at the suspect and asked what he had done. One of the healers explained to me that they met him at a river and he asked for their help with cleansing. However, they decided to take him to the police. Khule added that she doesn't believe that Nqobile was killed at the flat because even the forensics couldn't find any traces of blood there.

Nqobile's brother Mlungisi Kumalo told ZiMoja that he got a call from his cousin on Saturday who told him to rush to Jabulani flats because something terrible has happened to his sister. "When I got there I found Nqobile's beheaded body wrapped in a blanket. Her head was in a yellow bucket which was previously used for paint and it was filled with water. Seeing my sister like that was heartbreaking especially because the man had been abusing her and there was nothing I could do because she was not ready to leave him," Mlungisi said. A visibly exhausted Mlungisi said he hasn't slept well since Saturday because he keeps seeing his sister's head in that yellow bucket.

Mlungisi added that as siblings, are all displaced and renting rooms in the township because they were disowned by a family member who took over their home after their parent's death. "Nqobile's life spiraled out of control from then. She met this guy who inherited a flat from his parents and they quickly moved in together. I had never been to visit the flat until she called to tell me that her boyfriend was abusing her. I went there to call him to order but at that time Nqobile had no intention of leaving him and he took advantage because he knew she had nowhere to go," he said. The 35-year-old suspect who could not be named as he has not pleaded, appeared briefly at the Protea Magistrates Court where he is facing a murder charge. The state intends to oppose bail, the matter will be back in court for formal bail application soon.