Limpopo mother remanded after two young sons found dead in suspected poisoning

A Limpopo woman has been remanded in custody after her two young sons were found dead in separate incidents on Tuesday, June 2, and police say the siblings are suspected to have been poisoned.

Arrest and court appearance

Thelma Siphugu Ntanganedzeni, 27, made her first court appearance on Friday, June 5, in the Tshilwavhusiku Magistrate’s Court. The matter was postponed until Friday, June 12, for a bail application and further police investigations. She has been remanded in custody.

How the incidents unfolded

Police opened a murder investigation after the two brothers were found dead in separate incidents on Tuesday, June 2. According to the provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, the first incident involved a six‑year‑old boy who was taken to Tshilwavhusiku Health Centre.

Ledwaba said:

“At about 11.10am, police were summoned to Tshilwavhusiku Health Centre following a report of a patient suspected to have been poisoned. On arrival, they were shown the lifeless body of a six-year-old boy lying on a bed.”

Preliminary reports indicated the child’s father, with whom the boy does not reside, transported him to the clinic at about 9.20am after the child complained of stomach pains, diarrhoea and vomiting earlier that morning.

Second death and arrest

Later that day, police received a complaint from a family member about a missing eight‑year‑old boy who had been at school. A search found the child dead at his home in Madabani village. Emergency Medical Services personnel declared the child dead at the scene; police noted the child was lying on a bed wearing a blue tracksuit top and long tracksuit trousers.

Ledwaba said:

“Preliminary investigations revealed that the two deceased are siblings from Madabani village, and both are suspected to have been poisoned. Police investigations immediately commenced and subsequently led to the arrest of a 27-year-old female, alleged to be the mother of the two victims, on Wednesday, June 3, 2026.”

Investigations continuing

A forensic pathology post‑mortem examination will be conducted to determine the exact cause of death. Ledwaba said the motive behind the incident remains unclear and that police investigations continue.