Author: The Free Stater

Staff Reporter Residents of Bloemfontein and surrounding towns should brace for water shortages after Bloemwater warned it intended to suspend operations due to financial troubles. The bulk water supplier said its financial situation had become unsustainable due to the non-payment of accounts by the municipalities it services. Bloemwater is owed over R1 billion by the Mangaung Metro Municipality, which governs the Free State capital of Bloemfontein and the nearby towns of Botshabelo and Thaba Nchu. The water company also services the Kopanong and Mantsopa local municipalities. In a statement issued on Wednesday, Bloemwater said huge debts owed mainly by the…

Staff Reporter Four Bangladeshi nationals have been missing for over a week after they left their home in a Free State town with the intention to buy stock for their businesses, according to the police. The four men — Mukit Rasel Abdul, 37, Khurseed Alam Noakhali, 33, Sindur Hossain Noakhali and Moshim Mahommed, 35 — left Winburg on August 25 going to Welkom where they were to restock but never reached the gold mining town. They were travelling in a white Honda vehicle (model unknown) with the Lesotho registration number RY708. It is believed they had about R70 000 cash…

Staff Reporter A Bloemfontein man is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court on Thursday facing charges of killing his parents and a sibling. Police say they were alerted to a domestic homicide at 206 Raymond Mhlaba Street in Bloemfontein at about 9:15am on Tuesday. On arrival, they found three bodies in the house. The deceased were a 68-year-old father, 65 year-old-mother and their 40-year-old son. “They were found in the bedrooms with gunshot wounds to the head,” the police said in a statement. A revolver allegedly used in the shooting was placed on top of the woman’s body.…

Staff Reporter Central University of Technology (CUT) has been commended for the measures it put in place to curb the spread of COVID-19 at its campuses, resulting in the Free State institution being elevated to the “medium risk” category with regards to the pandemic. Higher Education, Science and Innovation Deputy Minister Buti Manamela visited the university’s main campus in Bloemfontein on Monday to assess its readiness for the phased re-opening of tertiary institutions under Level 2 of South Africa’s lockdown. His inspection visit followed the listing by the higher education department of CUT as one of the country’s “high risk”…

Staff Reporter A 30-year-old man and his friend aged 26 have appeared in the Bultfontein Magistrates Court facing a charge of killing a minor. Tshidiso Molefi, who is a stepfather to the deceased, and Lerato Nkenjani Joseph Ramakhala made their initial appearance on Monday and the case was postponed to allow them to secure legal representation. The pair made will return to court on September 4. Molefi and Nkenjani were arrested after a minor was mysteriously killed after leaving home to visit her grandmother who lived just a few hundred meters away in Phahameng township in the small farming town…

Staff Reporter The Free State High Court has ruled as illegal and invalid a special council meeting held by Metsimaholo Local Municipality councillors early this year at which key appointments were made. The meeting, held on February 20, appointed three people to act as municipal manager as well as director for technical services and director for corporate services. “. . . the special council meeting where the council was supposed to have appointed some officials contrary to the directive of the ExCo (Executive Council of the Free State) is unlawful and invalid,” read part of the judgment delivered by Judge…

Staff Reporter Windy conditions are expected to persist in the Free State, the Cape provinces and the North-West, the South African Weather Service (SAWS) has warned. A report compiled by SAWS forecasters Mkhushulwa William Msimanga and Samkelisiwe Thwala said the windy and chilly conditions experienced as the country entered the spring season on Tuesday are expected to persist until late Thursday. It said gale force winds will also continue along most of the country’s coastal belt, before moderating later in the day. “The cut-off low system will finally exit the country during Thursday, resulting in overall clearance of weather conditions,”…

Staff Reporter A couple that posed as prospective buyers at a car dealership in Viljoensdrift, near Vereeniging, surprised a salesperson when they pointed a firearm at him and ordered him to get off the vehicle during a test drive. Police say the man and a woman, aged between 30 and 35 years old, arrived at a second-hand dealership pretending to be interested in buying a Polo 6 vehicle and the salesperson, who is now the complainant in the matter, took them for a test drive. And while on the test drive, the suspects stopped on the side of the road…

Staff Reporter Police in the eastern Free State are looking for a man who allegedly snatched a 20-month-old baby and disappeared following a fight with the mother who is his former partner. The incident took place in Mamafubedu township in Petrus Steyn. In a statement released on Tuesday, provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Sam Makhele said the ex-boyfriend, only known as Chepete, disappeared with the child on Sunday night. “According to the mother, Khorny Mpembe, the ex-boyfriend . . . arrived at her residential place just before midnight on Sunday . . . and demanded (that she opens) the door for…

By Pam Belluck In the wake of Chadwick Boseman’s death from colon cancer at age 43, many people have questions about the disease, especially about the risk of colon cancer in younger people. Here’s what is known and what experts recommend: Q: Doesn’t colon cancer mostly affect older people? A: Although the majority of cases are found in older people, there has been an increase in cases in younger people in recent years. Among people over 65, rates of colorectal cancer, which includes tumours in the rectum or the colon, have actually been declining, probably because of more regular screening.…