Cape Town – Renowned Ndebele artist Esther Mahlangu was left unconscious after she was attacked in her home at Siyabuswa near KwaMhlanga in Mpumalanga over the weekend.
The 87-year-old was physically assaulted before being robbed of her firearm and an undisclosed amount of cash.
“Details of the robbery indicate that on the said day, the old woman, who was alone at the time, was preparing to take a nap [after] she reportedly locked all [the] doors of her house. Strangely, she noticed a man unknown to her inside the house.
“The man allegedly grabbed her and punched her in the face before tying both her hands with a cable and tried to strangle her until she reportedly became unconscious,” provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Semakaleng Manamela said in a statement.
Award-winning Ndebele artist Esther Mahlangu has been violently attacked and robbed in her home.
Mpumalanga police statement provides disturbing details of the attack, in which the 87-year-old was punched and strangled.This is heartbreaking and shameful. ? pic.twitter.com/D2waD6I2xG
— Karyn Maughan (@karynmaughan) March 21, 2022
Mahlangu told officers that after gaining consciousness, she realised that her house had been ransacked and her firearm and an undisclosed amount of money had been stolen from the safe.
She sustained bruises on her face and the suspect is currently not known.
Police have since launched a manhunt following the incident, and a case of house robbery has been opened.
According to News24, Dr Mahlangu is a well-known, award-winning artist from the Ndebele nation. Her art references patterns found in clothing and jewellery of the Ndebele people.
In 2019 she received the award of Officer in the French Order of Arts and Letters at a special celebration that coincides with the local Bastille Day celebrations at the French Residence, said the report.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
