Jealous' man tries to poison community

MBABANE - A land dispute between family members almost cost the lives of a number of Malindza community members.

This was after the disgruntled party in the dispute made an attempt to poison their ‘opponents’ by pouring a poisonous substance in a water tank that supplied the whole community.

The fight was between two siblings and it was the older one who allegedly committed the offence.

According to a source the problem began when the brothers locked horns over a piece of land. It was alleged that the younger brother sold his home to a certain family, something which did not go down well with his older brother.

The latter did not accept the new home-owners. "He went as far as blocking them from occupying it, but his plan seems to have failed as they continued to stay there," said the source.

It was then that he allegedly put poison in the water tank in an attempt to get rid of the family, only to find that the whole community used the water. The nature of the poisonous substance is yet to be confirmed.

The source explained that the alleged poisoning was discovered before the people consumed the water.

"If it was not discovered earlier the people would have died from drinking the contaminated water," claimed the source. The residents discovered that something was amiss when they went to draw water. The water was white and this prompted the community to call the police to attend to the issue as they suspected foul play.

The source said the police, in turn, called the Swaziland Water Services Corporation (SWSC).

Police Assistant PRO Inspector Stephen Dlamini confirmed that the matter was reported to the police who are currently investigating.

He said a sample of the water was taken by the SWSC for tests so that the alleged poison could be known.

Dlamini said no one had been arrested.

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