News / National
20 children poisoned at orphanage
10 Nov 2013 at 08:53hrs | Views
Johannesburg - A house mother at a care centre in Pretoria will appear in court after 20 children - mostly orphans - were rushed to hospital for suspected poisoning, police said on Sunday.
Children at the Malerato Centre for Hope in Mamelodi, outside Pretoria, complained of stomach ache shortly after lunch on Thursday, according to police spokesperson Tsekiso Mofokeng.
"Twenty kids were admitted," he said.
"A woman 35 years of age was arrested on suspicion of poisoning and charged with assault with the intent of causing grievous bodily harm," he told AFP.
Eight children were discharged later.
The centre houses 42 abandoned children as well as orphans whose parents died from Aids, according to the Sunday Times.
Orphanage principal Johanna Mashapa told the newspaper the woman apparently had given the children a powder with their lunch after a dispute with the management.
"We were so worried. They were vomiting and crying. They had runny stomachs and were so sick," she said.
Children at the Malerato Centre for Hope in Mamelodi, outside Pretoria, complained of stomach ache shortly after lunch on Thursday, according to police spokesperson Tsekiso Mofokeng.
"Twenty kids were admitted," he said.
"A woman 35 years of age was arrested on suspicion of poisoning and charged with assault with the intent of causing grievous bodily harm," he told AFP.
The centre houses 42 abandoned children as well as orphans whose parents died from Aids, according to the Sunday Times.
Orphanage principal Johanna Mashapa told the newspaper the woman apparently had given the children a powder with their lunch after a dispute with the management.
"We were so worried. They were vomiting and crying. They had runny stomachs and were so sick," she said.
Source - APF
