Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Semakaleng Manamela, said the incident occurred on Saturday afternoon at Siyabuswa near KwaMhlanga. "Details of the robbery indicate that on the said day, the old woman, who was alone at the time, was preparing to take a nap [after] she reportedly locked all [the] doors of her house. Strangely, she noticed a man unknown to her inside the house. The man allegedly grabbed her and punched her in the face before tying both her hands with a cable and tried to strangle her until she reportedly became unconscious," Manamela said.

According to Manamela, Dr Mahlangu had reported that she could not recall what happened after that; however, when she regained consciousness, she realised that her house had been ransacked and her firearm, as well as money, had been stolen from the safe. Mahlangu sustained some bruises to her face, and the attack was reported to the police at Siyabuswa, where a house robbery case was opened, and a manhunt was initiated. "It is shameful to hear that our senior citizens are now being targeted by heartless criminals who show no mercy.

On Sunday, we had an incident where an old male pensioner was strangled to death in Delmas. This cannot be allowed to continue unabated. The person who committed this evil act against one of the country's assets must be swiftly hunted down and be brought to book," Manamela said. Dr Mahlangu is a well-known, award-winning artist from the Ndebele nation, her art references patterns found in clothing and jewellery of the Ndebele people. In 2019 she received the award of Officer in the French Order of Arts and Letters at a special celebration that coincides with the local Bastille Day celebrations at the French Residence.