Author: The Free Stater

The police’s Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit is looking for two suspects after a teenage girl was raped in Wesseslsbron two years ago. Police say the incident happened on January 4, 2020 at about 20:15. The girl, who was 15 years old at the time of the incident, was walking from her friend’s place to her home when she was approached by two unknown men. Police spokesperson sergeant Sinah Mpakane said the men allegedly grabbed her and threatened to kill her if she screamed. “They covered her mouth with a jersey and told her not to scream or…

Local water board Bloemwater says suspected fraudsters are believed to be using its name to dupe unsuspecting job seekers with offers of employment claiming they represent the organisation. Those who fall for the scam are said to have lost thousands of rands to the alleged criminals. “It is alleged that the fraudster(s) claim to be representing Bloemwater with a list of vacancies that are available,” Bloemwater said in a statement on Wednesday. “They proclaim that for a person to secure employment . . . they have to pay a guarantee fee of R3 000,” the statement added. Bloemwater urged the…

A Chinese national has been charged with selling counterfeit and or expired alcohol at a liquor outlet in Odendaalsrus, about 165km north-east of Bloemfontein. The man was arrested following a raid by the police together with the provincial economic development department’s Consumer Protection Unit and the Free State Gambling, Liquor and Tourism Authority. The department says it took action after a community member warned people through a Facebook post earlier this week saying they should not buy alcohol from Odendaal Bottle Store near the taxi rank in town as it was “rotten”. “The department . . . swiftly responded by…

The ANC Free State Interim Provincial Committee (IPC) says it is on course to establishing branches as outlined in a roadmap to reorganise all branches in the province by mid-August. IPC provincial coordinator Paseka Nompondo said this after reaching an agreement on Friday with disgruntled ANC members who approached the Free State High Court on an urgent basis seeking to have the party structure disbanded. The members, who are from the Mangaung region, argued that the continued existence of the Interim Regional Committee (IRC) of Mangaung was unconstitutional. But the matter was never argued in court as planned after the…

National power utility Eskom says it does not understand why some municipalities failing to settle their accounts on time choose to rush to the courts instead of simply paying what’s due. Eskom’s Central East Cluster general manager Agnes Mlambo said this after Letsemeng Local Municipality in the Free State and Matlosana Local Municipality in the North-West were forced in two separate court rulings this week to settle the arrears for their bulk electricity supplies and always pay on time as they are legally obliged to do. Mlambo, who is responsible for the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal region, says she finds…

Replacement fly half Gareth Anscombe kicked a late conversion from the touchline as Wales claimed their first ever away victory in South Africa with an error-strewn 13-12 success over a much-changed Springboks at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein this Saturday evening. Wing Josh Adams crossed for the only try of the game with two minutes left on the clock, leaving Anscombe with a difficult conversion to win the game, but he landed the ball through the centre of the posts to make history for Wayne Pivac’s side. Stand-in captain Handre Pollard kicked four penalties for a Boks side that…

Two men have been arrested after they allegedly hijacked a truck driver who gave them a lift while travelling from George. Lejweleputswa district police spokesperson Captain Stephen Thakeng said in a statement the 52-year-old truck driver from George was refilling his Volvo truck with diesel on Tuesday at about 18:00 when a person who introduced himself as Denver Jacobs asked for a lift together with “his assistant”. Thakeng said they travelled together until they approached Jakkalsdrift, near Winburg, when Jacobs wanted to relieve himself. “He alighted the truck and when he came back, he apparently pointed the truck driver with…

Many owners are unaware that geysers specifically are the responsibility of the owner of the unit, even when the geyser is situated on the common property, for instance in a shaft. This is specifically spelled out in the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act. Where geysers are shared, that responsibility is shared by those owners on a prorate basis. This could happen for instance in a hotel block with a single bulk geyser for a group of rooms. We recently had an owner who, having sold their unit, needed a certificate of compliance for transfer and asked the body corporate to…

The Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development says three new cases of foot-and-mouth Disease (FMD) have been reported in the province. In a notice to farmers, Agriculture MEC Thembeni Nxangisa confirmed three cases and said his department was working with the affected farmers to ensure the disease is contained. “There is one case in Marquard and two cases in Viljoenskroon,” he said. “All farms have been placed under quarantine after chief state veterinarians were notified about possible signs of foot-and-mouth disease. “On these farms, the animals showed typical signs of FMD and samples were collected in order for…

Ngwathe Local Municipality in the northern Free State has paid R1.1-million to Eskom so it can repair damages to the power line in the area caused by overloading. Eskom provincial spokesperson Stefanie Jansen van Rensburg said in a statement the payment was made on Monday morning and work to restore supplies to Parys and Vredefort has started. “Repairs to the Eskom equipment will now commence,” said Van Rensburg. “Based on the assessments of the damage, supply to Ngwathe should be restored by midnight tonight,” she added. The spokesperson however said the initial repairs were focusing on the hot connections and…