WITCHCRAFT SCARE: BABOON KILLED AT LUHLANGOTSINI

Mandla Maseko whose dogs discovered the baboon (inset) shows its skin after it was killed at Luhlangotsini. (Pic: Sikelela Mamba)

PIGG’S PEAK – There was a witchcraft scare at Luhlangotsini and residents are discussing the issue in hushed tones, after a baboon ran into a homestead and tried opening a garage door.

This, after it had bit one of the residents who were trying to remove it from the homestead. The incident, which left residents of the area suspecting witchcraft, happened around the early evening hours of Sunday.
The baboon was first seen by Mandla Maseko, who is employed in Pigg’s Peak as a watchman. Maseko is a resident of Luhlangotsini.

Narrating what happened on the day, Maseko said he was on his way to work with his five dogs, when he noticed the baboon approaching the main road. “One of my dogs started barking loudly and violently. At first, I did not suspect anything but continued with my journey. After a couple of minutes, all the dogs followed suit and started barking as well and upon further inspection, I noticed that they had spotted the baboon,” Maseko explained.
He said he had not seen a baboon in the area in many years. He stated that he then set his dogs on the baboon and also followed in a bid to see where it would run to. Maseko mentioned that after running for a distance of less than a kilometre, he raised an alarm for other residents to assist in catching the baboon.

“The baboon passed about three homesteads and went straight to the fourth one, jumped over the gate and entered the premises. Many residents had already gathered outside the homestead, waiting to see what the baboon would do thereafter,” Maseko narrated.
He said after entering the homestead, the baboon went to the garage and tried opening the garage door but it failed. It then ran towards the homestead’s pit latrine where it eventually hid.
The residents followed and stood by the pit latrine’s door, thinking that the animal would come out. It remained inside for a couple of minutes but later tried to squeeze itself out through a small window but failed. It would now and again show its upper limbs as it tried to come out of the pit latrine. Maseko, who was carrying an axe, took advantage of this and hit the baboon’s limbs.

Thereafter, it made a deafening sound before forcefully pushing its way out of the pit latrine, sending those standing at the entrance to all directions. The animal tried to run away but the dogs chased it. The baboon fought back and one of the dogs was injured.
In a bid to save his dogs, Maseko is said to have approached the now fighting baboon and tried to hit it with the axe. It became more violent and it bit him in his right leg.
Seeing that the situation could turn nasty, Maseko made another attempt to hit the baboon, much harder this time. Indeed, he hit it on the head and it lost strength and later died.

Maseko then took the baboon to his homestead where they skinned and cooked it, before eating it with other residents. “The meat was very nice,” said Maseko.

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