GRAPHIC| Stepfather locks everyone in and sets shack on fire

A stepfather in the East Rand has reportedly done the unthinkable after he allegedly locked himself and three children in a shack before setting it alight.

STEPFATHER LINKED TO THE DEATH OF THREE CHILDREN

The incident happened in Ivory Park Ext 10 in the early hours of Monday morning, 29 August.

It is reported that the stepfather had a quarrel with the children’s mother earlier that evening (Sunday) before leaving the house to seek safety.

However, she left her children aged 17, 13 and 10 with the man (38) who reportedly turn his anger on them by setting the shack on fire.

Yesterday, The Voice of Tembisa FM spoke to an eyewitness, Derrick Madibane, who recounted the tragic scene that left him traumatised.

HOURS LEADING TO THE FATEFUL SHACK FIRE

“This painful tragedy happened very late on Sunday evening. The stepfather of the children had a fight with the biological mother who decided to leave in the heat of the moment,“ he said.

He added: “Before the shack fire, the stepfather who I can’t name told his friend that he was going to sleep when realising that his wife wasn’t coming home. The next thing we saw was fire coming out of the shack”.

“The neighbours blew whistles to alert other neighbours for assistance.”

Madibane

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He told VOT that they tried to extinguish the blaze but the fire was out of control.

“But we persisted until we were able to break down the sheets,” he said.

After breaking them down, Madibane said they came across the burnt bodies of the three children; however, at this stage, they were not sure whether the stepfather was present or not.

“When we further demolished the shack, we found the stepfather was also killed in the fire.”

Madibane

He also told VOT that if the mother of children had stayed, she would’ve been the fifth recovered body burnt into ashes.