12-year-old Sahala Fanekena Rahanitraharivony, who went missing on Monday morning in Ampefiloha Ambodirano, was found dead the following day in the commune of Bongatsara.
“I didn’t have the strength to approach; I burst into tears.” Yesterday, in Ampefiloha Ambodirano, Clermont Ranaivomanana’s voice still trembled as he recounted the discovery of the body of his 12-year-old daughter, Sahala Fanekena Rahanitraharivony, found lifeless on a hill in Bongatsara.
A security guard, this father had just finished two days of work. Upon returning home, feeling ill, he did not even have the strength to prepare breakfast. On Monday morning, his wife had already left for work in the export processing zone, while their children played in the yard. Around 7:30 a.m., Sahala was sent by a cousin to buy tea and bread. She returned briefly, asked for 200 ariary to buy bread, and then vanished. She would never return.
Her father then embarked on a desperate search. He scoured the neighborhoods, questioned shopkeepers, and searched alleys, riverbanks, and woods. He alerted the local fokontany and the police, and posted a missing person notice on social media. Accompanied by his son, his brother, and several relatives, he continued the search tirelessly, day and night.
“I didn’t sleep, I didn’t eat; I could only think about finding my daughter,” he confided. Hopes flickered through conflicting testimonies on Facebook, but were brutally extinguished the next day.
In the late afternoon, Clermont, his brother, and family members discovered Sahala in a pine forest on the hill of Ambohimpanarivo. The young girl was lying on her right side, wearing only underwear, with a bruised and bloodied face. “She had been killed elsewhere and left there; there was no trace of blood around,” stated a devastated Clermont.
The mother, Bakoliarisoa Hasinarivony, was not present at the discovery. Informed by phone, she collapsed. “I couldn’t believe it; I became like a madwoman. We have no conflict with anyone. Sahala had no problems with the neighbors,” she repeated, distraught.
A physician dispatched to the scene concluded that she had been raped and murdered approximately twelve hours before the body was discovered. The remains were released to the family after customary procedures. The Criminal Investigation Department (Brigade Criminelle) is leading the inquiry.
Captured & Published at: 2026-07-02 06:43:04 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/07/ampefiloha-ambodirano-un-pere-raconte.html