A Crossroads woman claims her elderly neighbour tried to burn her family alive earlier this week.
Nokuphumla Mata, 53, received a death threat via SMS on Monday night, just hours before a fire broke outside her home.
The text, written in IsiXhosa, translates: “Relax, I’ll give you a few hours to live. Bullets will hit someone. Watch!”
The mother of two says she woke up that night when her kids noticed the flames.
She says the suspect couldn’t gain access to her home because the gates were locked but managed to throw a bottle of petrol on her property and start a fire.
“It was around 9pm when the incident happened. They left the bottle outside the yard.
“The kids saw the flames and shouted for my attention and I went out.
“The fire was started near the car, thank goodness that my kids were still awake at the time.”
Even though no one was hurt and they managed to put out the fire before it could damage her home, Nokuphumla says her family has been left shaken.
“My kids are scared to be outside because of my neighbour,” she says.
“And I’ve seen that she means what she says, because she made her threat and then followed through.”
The mom tells the Daily Voice the suspect was a confidante.
“Whenever I went through hardships in my marriage, I would tell her, seeking for guidance because she’s older and a pastor.
“I think she’s jealous of me because I can’t remember ever fighting with her about anything.
“But she’s made my life hell and she’s turned my life upside-down.”
Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Joseph Swartbooi says: “Kindly be advised that the complainants in the matter were in their house on Monday night in Umngqungqo Street in Crossroads at about 9.30pm when she heard children screaming, alerting them about the fire.
“Upon inspection, they saw a bottle containing petrol lying between cars. The motive for the attack is unknown.
“The suspects fled the scene. Nyanga police are investigating a case of arson.”
The 62-year-old woman was arrested on Tuesday after Nokuphumla opened a case.
“I’m leaving for the Eastern Cape soon, afraid of what she could do to my husband and children. But I’ll let the police deal with the case,” she adds.
The elderly woman tells the Daily Voice that she didn’t try to petrol-bomb her neighbour’s house.
“I was sleeping on Monday night when my granddaughter came to wake me up and told me that something was happening with my neighbours.
“When I went to look, my granddaughter said I should stay inside and not go out there.
“Then the following day around 2pm, I got home and saw that there was a police van and then saw Nokuphumla.
“The police told me to go with them to the police station, I thought I was only going to give a statement and then they told me that they were keeping me for the night. I was then released yesterday afternoon.
“But I didn’t send any texts to her and I didn’t try to burn her house because if I burned her house, then mine would be affected too.