Police sniffer dogs led investigators to a Khayelitsha home where blood-stained evidence linked a woman and her boyfriend to the brutal murder of seven-year-old Lolitha Kowa.

According to police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg, an integrated SAPS team, including the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS), Dog Unit, POP, Crime Intelligence, and Harare detectives, began investigating after Lolitha’s body was discovered in Nambuzane Street, Kuyasa, on Wednesday morning.

“The biological sniffer dog led members to an address in Sindwadwa Street, Kuyasa, where the child was last seen,” Twigg said.

“The dog reacted to blood on a mop and blood stains on the floor of the house, which is believed to be that of the child. An adult male and female were arrested in connection with the murder this afternoon. They are due to appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court on Friday, July 25, 2025.”

Lolitha had last been seen by her family on Tuesday afternoon, around 3pm, when she arrived home from school and said she was going to play at a friend’s house.

That friend’s mother has since been charged with her murder.

Family members said they began searching for Lolitha by 5pm, and police were contacted around 9pm.

The girl’s aunt, Ntombifuthi Kowa, said they first learned of the child’s death the next morning via a community WhatsApp group.

“Lolitha’s mother became concerned around 5pm and began searching for her, but couldn’t find her at any of the usual places, including the house she mentioned. Around 9pm, police arrived and helped search for her,” Kowa said.

“We had circulated her picture the previous night, and the next morning we received a picture of her and identified her by the clothes, so we went to the scene.

“We could see that she had been stabbed in the head, with the weapon still lodged there. Her stomach appeared bloated. Her pants were washed and hanging on the suspect’s washing line with other laundry, and bundled up in the pile of clothes that were thrown on her body.”

Kowa said the police suggested they go to the last place Lolitha said she was going.

“When we went to her house with the police, they found her cleaning blood off the walls. The woman and her boyfriend were taken to the police station for questioning.”

Family friend Mickey Linda said: “We went to the house three times. The female suspect refused to open for us and made excuses. We called the police and asked them to come out because we had a missing child, but we were told there was only one police van and it didn’t have a loud hailer. We needed the police because we had no right or search warrant, so we gave up.”

Ward Councillor Lonwabo Mqina said the community later marched to the police station after the suspects were taken in, demanding their immediate arrest.

“People didn’t like that; they wanted the police to arrest them, not just take them for questioning. It couldn’t be that after such a senseless, ruthless murder, police still didn’t arrest them, especially with the evidence pointing to one house,” Mqina said.

“Sniffer dogs confirmed it happened there. Still, police kept looking for more evidence. We then led the community to the police station, fearing there wouldn’t be justice for Lolitha.”

He added: “They must rot in jail. Our community doesn’t have space for criminals. We are in shock, someone murdered a seven-year-old girl like that, using a screwdriver and then leaving it in her head. It’s heartless. This is painful.”

Kowa said the woman accused of her niece’s murder was no stranger to the family.

“She could come to our home at any time; she spent a lot of time there, and she could do whatever she wanted to do; she was free.”

mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za 

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