TWO boys narrowly escape death.
The boys, aged 14 and 16 from Gugulethu in Cape Town, were allegedly served poisoned food by a woman believed to be their relative on Friday, 20 June.
According to residents, the relative, who happens to be the 14-year-old's mum and older sister to the 16-year-old, prepared soup and served it to the boys.
But one of the boys noticed an unusual substance in the food while eating. Suspicious, he showed it to the other boy and they soon realised it resembled rat poison.
When they asked the woman about the contents of the food, she allegedly failed to explain. Alarmed, the boys rushed to a neighbour's house with the tainted food.
The neighbour, who asked not to be named, told Daily Sun: "I was shocked because I never thought she'd do something like that to her own child and brother. These kids could have died if they hadn't seen the poison. We never suspected anything. She never said she had a problem with the children. Everything seemed normal."
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The neighbour said she immediately called the police and rushed the boys to the hospital with the help of other residents. They brought the bowls of pap and soup along so doctors could assess the food.
"One of the boys was discharged from the hospital on Sunday, 22 June, but the other one is still being treated," added the neighbour.
The community is still reeling from shock, with many struggling to understand what could have motivated such an act. Residents described the woman as quiet and keeping to herself with no known history of violence or problems involving the kids.
The police said an attempted murder investigation is underway.
Police spokesman Sergeant Wesley Twigg said: "Gugulethu police registered an attempted murder case following an incident in Europe informal settlement on Friday in which the complainant alleged he was poisoned. Circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation. We can confirm that a woman was arrested and will appear in the Athlone Magistrates Court once she has been charged."
