Nomonde Zondi|Published
The High Court of Pietermaritzburg has rejected the request that the two sons of the former mayor of Alfred Duma Municipality, Mnambithi, Mr. Vincent Madlala, and their two friends be brought forward in the case of three murders.
The defendants namely Mr. Sandile Sbonelo Madlala, Sabelo Madlala, Lethukuthula Khumalo and Thabiso Cedric Nkosi appeared in this court on three charges of murder, conspiracy to murder, obstruction of justice, possession of illegal firearms, ammunition and other firearms.
These cases are linked to the murder of Mr Mxolisi ‘Ncedo’ Dladla, his ex-girlfriend Ms Nompumelelo Thwala and Mr Nhlanhla Fortune Zulu in August 2020.
Dladla, who was a friend of the defendants, is said to have lived in the mayor’s family for years, knowing a lot of what was happening in the lives of members of the mayor’s family.
It is said that he had bought a VW Polo but he lost his job which resulted in him not being able to pay for it every month.
It is said that the Madlala brothers intervened to continue paying it.
It is said that when Dladla got a job in the South African National Defense Force (SANDF) he made efforts to get his car back but the brothers no longer wanted that to happen.
It is said that the suspects then shot the dead, and then changed the story, as if the mayor’s daughters were being shot.
In their statement to the police in Zakheni, some people said that the assailants were traveling in a Toyota Etios, and shot them while they were traveling in a VW Polo towing a BMW that was not working.
At the police station, they even described the attackers, and mentioned the types of guns they said they used in the shooting.
However, the case took another step when the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) took over to investigate the case.
The Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Lawrence Gcaba, presented evidence showing that the shooting did not happen as the defendants claimed. He said that the location where the bullet shells were found indicates that the people who shot were standing together in different places, and rejected the idea that they were shooting from a moving car.
In addition, five State witnesses testified that the defendants parked the BMW at the utility company and walked away. They testified that gunshots were heard coming from the direction they had gone, and that when they returned, they took the BMW and left.
The State stated that the BMW was then shot with a barrage of bullets, with the aim of ending the incident, which was proven by gun experts who were said to have found 12 bullet shells in one place, which was inconsistent with what they said that they were shot by a passing car.
After listening to the argument on the application filed, Judge Elsje Bazuidenhout, decided that Madlala’s sons, Khumalo and Nkosi have a case to answer. However, he brought them forward in the ninth case of bringing false evidence.
“I will state the reasons for my decision when I give my judgment,” he said.
Meanwhile, the defendants’ father, Mr. Vincent Madlala, as well as his daughter, Ms. Sinazo Madlala, appeared at the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s Court for possession of six illegal guns.
After the defendants finished the hearing of their case, they went to support their father and sister in the court where they had appeared.
After the court issued its verdict, the defendants told the court that they would not testify, and no witnesses would be called.
The case was adjourned to next week.