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Residents of Hammanskraal are reeling in horror after a 37-year-old man allegedly hacked three people to death with a digging spade before crashing a stolen car while trying to flee.
The killings, which unfolded in the early hours of Tuesday, 30 September 2025, have left the tight-knit community outside Pretoria in disbelief and mourning. Police confirmed that the suspect, believed to be the father of one of the victims, was arrested shortly after the rampage.
According to initial reports, the man entered a yard where a three-year-old child was playing and attacked the toddler without warning. The child died instantly. Moments later, he allegedly turned on the child’s mother, identified as 33-year-old Rose Baloyi, before attacking 32-year-old Sibusiso Langatshe, believed to have been the woman’s partner.
The brutality of the attack has been described by authorities as “inhuman and deeply disturbing.”
Witnesses say the screams of the victims echoed through the quiet neighbourhood before neighbours rushed to the scene, only to find a blood-soaked yard. The suspect, still wielding the spade, allegedly fled on foot before hijacking a passing vehicle in a desperate bid to escape.
His attempt to flee ended abruptly when the stolen vehicle crashed a few streets away. Community members quickly surrounded the scene and alerted police, who arrested the suspect before an angry crowd could reach him.
Emergency services confirmed that all three victims died from severe head and body injuries. The suspect sustained minor injuries in the crash and was taken under police guard to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi described the incident as one of the most gruesome crimes the area has witnessed this year.
“The suspect allegedly used a digging spade to attack the victims, including a three-year-old child,” Nevhuhulwi said. “Preliminary investigations suggest that the attack was targeted. The suspect is believed to have known the victims personally.”
She added that police were still investigating the motive, but jealousy and domestic tension have not been ruled out.
In Hammanskraal, residents gathered outside the family home in shock, lighting candles and praying for the victims. Many struggled to comprehend how a man could commit such violence against people he once lived with.
“He used to come here all the time,” said a neighbour, visibly shaken. “No one could have imagined he would do something like this. We heard screams, and by the time we ran out, it was too late.”
Others described the suspect as a quiet but short-tempered man who had been living apart from the family. “There had been problems between him and the woman,” another resident said. “He thought she had moved on. That’s when things got worse.”
Police confirmed that the suspect and Baloyi had previously been in a relationship and shared the child who was killed in the attack. The case has drawn attention to the growing number of domestic violence-related killings in Gauteng, many of which have turned fatal in recent months.
Major General Tommy Mthombeni, Gauteng’s Acting Provincial Commissioner, condemned the killings, calling them a “brutal and senseless act of rage.”
“No grievance, real or imagined, can justify taking the life of a child and two adults in such a manner,” Mthombeni said. “We urge our communities to seek peaceful resolution to domestic disputes and to report any signs of violence before it escalates.”
He added that the police would ensure that the suspect faces the full might of the law. “We are working closely with the prosecution team to ensure that this case is prioritised. The victims and their families deserve justice.”
The suspect is expected to appear before the Hammanskraal Magistrates’ Court soon on three counts of murder, hijacking, and attempted escape.
Meanwhile, anger and grief continue to grip the community. Residents have demanded harsher penalties for perpetrators of gender-based and domestic violence, saying too many women and children are dying at the hands of people who claim to love them.
Community leader Thabo Mahlangu said residents were struggling to come to terms with the killings. “This is not just a crime — it’s a tragedy that has scarred our entire community,” he said. “We are burying three people, including an innocent child. It’s too much to bear.”
He called for increased police visibility and better support services for victims of domestic abuse. “We keep losing people because warning signs are ignored,” Mahlangu said. “If the system acted faster, maybe some of these lives could be saved.”
At the victims’ home, mourners described Rose Baloyi as a devoted mother who worked hard to provide for her child. Friends say she had recently started a new job and appeared to be rebuilding her life.
“She was finally happy,” said a close friend. “She had gone through so much, but she was trying to move forward. Now she’s gone, and so is her baby.”
Police have urged members of the public not to share graphic images or videos of the crime scene circulating on social media, warning that doing so is both illegal and deeply distressing to the victims’ families.
As investigations continue, the three lives lost — a mother, a child, and a man — have become symbols of a broader crisis that continues to haunt South African communities.
For now, Hammanskraal is left with shattered hearts and a haunting question: how could love, jealousy, and rage converge so violently in one morning, leaving behind silence where laughter once lived?
