‘Liam was naughty but didn’t deserve to be shot dead’

Roseline Siegel believes her son Liam Jevono, 14, would not have been shot and killed, allegedly by a security guard during the Mangaung shutdown protests, had he been at school.

Liam, a reserved grade 7 pupil at Heide Primary in Heidedal, Bloemfontein, became a victim of the violent service delivery protests that swept through townships around the Free State capital on Monday morning.

Within two days the protests escalated and shops were looted in several parts of Bloemfontein, which has left the area resembling a ghost town. At least 19 people have been arrested for public violence and looting. 

Residents are demanding the disbandment of the Mangaung municipality and for its manager to step down amid claims of maladministration.

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