NELSPRUIT - The founders of Barberton Times, Mr Graham Lizamore (62) and
Ms Kathleen (Kate) Lizamore  (50), were brutally murdered in their home in Pinetown in KwaZulu-Natal last week.
The couple had been working in the media industry for many years and got Barberton Times off the ground in 2001. They moved from the Eastern Cape to Durban barely two months ago where Ms Lizamore started working for Independent Newspapers.
Their decomposing bodies were discovered on top of a toilet in a bathroom on Friday. Preliminary reports suggest that
Mr Lizamore was strangled. A refuse bag was covering Ms Lizamore’s head - indicating that she might have  suffocated.
The bodies were later moved to the bedroom where they were carefully examined.
No signs of forced entry could be found to their home in Moseley Park. A TV and even a handbag remained untouched in the lounge.
The couple was last seen by a neighbour in the complex on Wednesday. Phone calls by family members remained unanswered and a sister of Mr Lizamore went to their home on Friday where she made the gruesome discovery at about 14:30. She was severely traumatised and is currently being hospitalised.
The houses are situated close to one another and neighbours said that one could easily have heard screams from that distance. Two cases of murder are being investigated. Ms Michélle Sephton, who was part of the Barberton Times team, described
Mr Lizamore as a patient, kind person who had so much love to give.
"Kate and Graham were an inspiration to many and made Barberton Times rise out of the ashes like a phoenix, despite many Barberton residents saying that it was an impossible task. They were true pioneers in more ways than one."