Lerato Kganyago, the media personality and businessperson, has made it clear that she will not be taking legal action or involving the police against her social media stalker, who recently claimed to have children with her and pleaded to see them. Despite the false allegations made by the individual, Lerato believes that her life is not in danger.
In a concerned tone, the former Miss Soweto titleholder emphasized that she sees herself as a human being first and foremost, and she recognized that the stalker, who identified himself as Siyabonga Kopele, is in need of help. Lerato explained that her approach to dealing with such situations is different from others who may choose to press charges. She chose not to be aggressive unless she felt her life was genuinely threatened. However, she did feel it was important to inform her family about the situation, especially when the stalker started involving media publications and colleagues.
"I am smart when it comes to mental illness. Some people have opened cases, and my approach is different. I didn’t want to be aggressive unless I felt like my life was in danger. It was important for me to let the family know that this thing can become problematic, especially when he started tagging media publications, and some of my colleagues were making me aware of this guy."
The harassment from the stalker has been ongoing for several months, but Lerato decided to remain silent about it, understanding that the individual was in need of assistance. The situation escalated when he began contacting her directly, as well as people close to her.
Lerato shared that she had ignored the situation for a long time until the stalker reached out to people working for her. They tried to gather information about him but found him to be somewhat of a mystery. She expressed her hope that he receives the necessary help, as he poses a threat not only to society but also to himself if left unattended. Lerato emphasized that she wanted to raise awareness about such incidents rather than make a mockery of the situation.
She said:
I have been ignoring it for a very long time, until he contacted me via people that work for me. We googled him, but he was like a mystery. I hope he gets the help that he needs, because he is a hanger not only to society but also himself if he is not properly attended to. It was very important to me not to make a mockery of it, but to make people aware that such things happen.
What happened?
Regarding the events that unfolded, the stalker also revealed on social media that he was unemployed and relied on the R350 social relief grant. In a subsequent video, he pleaded with Lerato to let him see his alleged children, claiming to have a child with her.
The man who said he was from East London, Eastern Cape, also took to X to say if he was lying, then Kganyago should sue him for defamation of character.
Lerato responded by stating that she did not know him and clarified that she does not have children with him or anyone else. She has previously opened up about her struggles with fertility and recently shared that she had experienced a fifth miscarriage.
As the videos circulated on social media, they eventually reached the stalker's family, and his brother reached out to Lerato. She had been searching for his family for some time, and they finally made contact. The brother informed Lerato that the stalker had been admitted to the hospital before and that he is not in a stable mental state. Lerato received assurance that he was being taken care of and was under medical attention.
Lerato acknowledged that public figures often face such incidents, with strangers approaching them and even claiming to be related to them at times. She recalled an incident where a man went to her workplace and falsely claimed to be her husband.
While Kopele's family was unavailable for immediate comment, a user on the social media platform X, who identified as Kopele's brother, stated that Kopele is suffering from a mental health illness.
