Vigilantes stone to death man accused of attempting to rape six-year-old girl

A 40-year-old man accused of attempting to rape a six-year-old girl was stoned to death by residents of a housing estate in Durban, South Africa.

The man's body was discovered earlier in a bushy area near a petrol station west of Durban city centre, The Independent reported. A murder inquiry was opened by police.

South African Police Services (SAPS) spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said the unidentified man was killed by a mob on Monday (23 October).

"It is alleged that at about 13.30, at Clare Estate, an unknown man believed to be in his forties was assaulted to death by community members after he attempted to rape a six-year-old girl," Zwane said. Clare Estate is located about 350 miles (560km) from Johannesburg.

The spokesperson added that police had also launched an investigation into the alleged rape attempt which is being led by Durban's Sydenham SAPS. No arrests have been made.

This is the not the first time vigilante mobs have attacked rapists or suspected rapists, The Sun noted.

In July, a grieving mother in India was seen assaulting the man suspected of murdering and raping her daughter as part of an all-women lynching that led to his death. Meanwhile in Kazakhstan, a mob beat an alleged paedophile in May after they allegedly caught him undressing a six-year-old girl, who he was getting ready to rape.