A 15-year-old school boy from Elsies River died after he was allegedly struck over the head with a spade.
Trayton Januarie, a Grade 10 pupil from Valhalla High, was on his way home from his grandmother’s house in Gladstone Street when a car pulled up, men got out and believed to have attacked him on Sunday evening.
Ouma Lisa Konnight explains that the trouble started earlier that day when her husband’s nephew had ‘n gestryery with another laaitie and threw a glass at him.
She claims the boy said “julle gaan nou sien” and then went to fetch his mense, who arrived in the car with pangas and spades: “I don’t know exactly what happened but my eldest son called me and said, ‘mammie, daar lê Trayton’.
“They were a car full of people, the man just got out of the car and when my son asked if there was a problem, he started stabbing my son and then he went for Trayton and hit him with a spade over the head.”
Trayton’s hartseer mom Tracey Januarie-Herwels, who lives around the corner from where the incident took place, said that she was in bed watching SA Idols when she received a call after 8pm and rushed to her mother’s house.
“We were wondering when Trayton is coming home because he needs to be in at 8pm.
“I heard a commotion outside and next thing I received a phone call from my mom but I couldn’t hear anything my mom was saying, I just heard shouting.
“I rushed over to my mom’s house and when I got there everyone was standing around him, he sat up straight and his eyes were open; he saw me and I told him, ‘Trayton, get up, mammie is gonna take you to the hospital’.
“Someone said they should lay him down and the moment they laid my child down, his lips turned pot blou.
“I ran and shouted for help, ‘my kind trek blou’. I went back and his lips were even more blue, his eyes were standing still.
“I opened his mouth and his tongue was thick, it looked like his tongue was also blue.”
Tracey says that they rushed to Elsies River Day Hospital where her son was declared dead.
She says that police came to see her and she was told that they would open a case for her son’s murder.
Police did not respond to queries by Wednesday night.
Trayton’s parents are both unemployed and are struggling with funeral arrangements, they are appealing for any assistance towards their son’s burial. If you are able to assist, contact 074 705 2009 or 071 079 5253.