Suspect arrested in KZN LGBTQI murder case

This story might upset some readers, including children.

KwaZulu-Natal police have arrested a 39-year-old man on the province’s south coast in connection with the murder of 28-year-old, Anele Bhengu.

Bhengu’s naked body was found in bushes close to the house of a friend she was visiting in KwaMakhutha, south of Durban.

Her stomach was cut open and her throat was slit. Her family believe that she was raped and murdered because she was lesbian.

Police say the suspect was arrested in the Gcilima area, near Margate.

Members of the police’s Tactical Response Team accompanied Margate detectives to the suspect’s home in the rural area.

KwaZulu-Natal Police Spokesperson, Thembeka Mbhele, says when the police approached the house, the suspect fled into the bushes. The officers gave chase and arrested him.

Mbhele says the suspect will appear in the Umbumbulu Magistrate Court soon.

Bhengu’s murder has been widely condemned. This crime and the murder of two gay men in Durban over the past year have also been met with fear and condemnation within the LGBTQI community.

Bhengu’s murder brings the killing of LGBTIQ community members under spotlight: