A father of a four-year-old boy hanged himself after he had allegedly stabbed and hanged his son on Saturday evening.

The community of Schoemansdal woke up to the devastating news of the death of a father and son.

During the incident, Xolani Hlebeya had recorded a short video of himself explaining why he had decided to take his own life and that of his son. He shared the video on social media. In the video, his son could be seen hanging from the roof.

A provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, said they have opened a murder docket and an inquest into this.

“Information at our disposal suggests that after he had had an argument with his wife in eMalahleni over the phone, Hlebeya allegedly sent a message to her alleging that he wanted to kill their child. The wife informed her father-in-law. The father-in-law and a neighbour went to the house and knocked on the door, but no one answered,” said Mohlala.

“As a result, they forced open the kitchen door and searched the house. They were shocked by the horrible discovery of the child’s body with stab wounds and the father hanging from the garage roof.”

In the video that has already gone viral, Hlebeya accused his wife of cheating. He also shared how life had been tough on him since he had lost his job shortly after the outbreak of Covid-19.

“We also received information that the wife was admitted to the hospital and is currently processing the incident.

“This case is currently being investigated. Both the father and the son have been laid to rest,” said Mohlala.

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