Mohamed introduces me to Mr Rooble by his surname, rather than his first name. I assume it is probably because of his age. Mr Rooble appears to be in his late 50s. He sits quietly in his chair, his face blank. He has come to talk about his shop, in particular the fate of his nephew Ibrahim, who worked behind its small worn counter. The lethargy that I sense from him makes the imam's office feel uncharacteristically dark and sullen. He keeps his account brief and sparse. Mr Rooble's nephew Ibrahim had survived an arson attack on the shop in January 2010. At 2 am assailants had thrown a lit bottle of petrol into the shop. Mr Rooble was not there at the time, as his primary role in the business was to collect stock in Bellville, where he lived. The fire destroyed everything inside, but fortunately all three shopkeepers in the shop managed to escape. Two months later, just as it appeared as though life had returned to normal, robbers descended on the shop again. This time Ibrahim was shot and killed.

There was a faint hope of justice, Mr Rooble said, when the police notified him that they had a lead. They suspected that Ibrahim's neighbour could be implicated in the murder, as witnesses had seen the assailants’ vehicle parked in this person's driveway. When Mr Rooble followed up with the police they told him that the suspect was in hiding, but assured him that they would apprehend the man once they found him. When he subsequently tried to follow up again and the investigating officer did not answer the phone, he decided to pay a visit to Philippi East police station in person. After making enquiries at the front reception desk, police officials told him that they could not assist him unless they received a letter from his attorneys. He subsequently procured a letter from public interest attorneys and returned with it to the station. To date, he told me, his efforts had still not produced any results.

A few months later I queried a police investigator at Philippi East police station about the murder, hoping to provide some feedback to the anxious shop owner.