Daily Sun (August 27 2013) - RESIDENTS heard that a woman's body had been found with her eyes gouged out and her lips cut off. Rumours of the muthi murder led to violent clashes and by last night three people had been killed, three were wounded and another was missing . . .THESE ARE VICTIMS OF WHAT IS BEING CALLED THE TAVERN RIOTS!
The mutilated body of a young woman, naked except for a bra, was found a few metres from a tavern in Vuka Search squatter camp in Carletonville on the West Rand on Sunday morning. As word spread, angry residents, mostly women, gathered and marched to the tavern. They said the fact that her face had been mutilated indicated a muthi killing and said the tavern was a danger to women in the area. They demanded that it should be closed.
When the owner wouldn't come outside to talk to the people, windows were broken and bottles smashed against the walls. Then the people went home.
But, according to residents, the tavern owner and the mlungu owner of the plot on which the tavern is situated, went out yesterday morning hunting down a resident whom they accused of planning the "tavern riot".
Community member Lebohang Matisa (36) said they took the man back to the tavern. "They attacked him with pangas inside the tavern," Stokie Modise (37) said. Word spread about the attack and about 60 residents marched to the tavern. By now cops had arrived.
"Cops went inside and fetched the man who had been attacked with pangas. He was taken to the hospital," said a witness. But before cops could leave the scene, the plot owner who was inside the tavern allegedly fired shots.