SECURITY BOSS PAID FOR HIT’: NPA reveals links of slain Loyiso’s shooter
BRUTALLY KILLED: Social activist Loyiso Nkohla Mabandla
The man accused of being involved in the brutal murder of well-known social activist Loyiso Nkohla Mabandla was allegedly hired by a security boss to carry out the hit.
Hawks spokesperson Zinzi Hani confirmed the arrest of 38-year-old Zukisa Tshabile this past Friday after an intense six-month investigation.
Tshabile has been charged with one count of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder.
Hani said it is believed that Mabandla was targeted for his role in talks to clear Metrorail’s Central Line, where about 1 000 squatters had constructed makeshift homes.
According to National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila, Tshabile is linked to the owner of a security company, via cellphone and bank records.
“The State alleges that the accused is linked to another suspect, who owns a security company who hired the accused before court and others to kill Nkohla.
“The accused is linked to the suspect mentioned above through cellphone and bank records,” Ntabazalila said.
“His case has been postponed until November 6 for bail information. If the accused applies for bail, the State will oppose the Schedule 6 bail application. The court also heard that the accused has a pending matter.”
The accused will remain in custody. Ntabazalila said before the start of proceedings at the Athlone Magistrate’s Court, the media had applied to take pictures of Tshabile as the case was in the public interest.
“The accused, who was wearing a surgical mask, opposed the application, saying he feared for his family. This irritated the deceased’s family and others in the court,” he said.
“The magistrate, citing the [Henri] van Breda judgement, allowed the media to take pictures.”
In May 2018, Van Breda was convicted for the murders of his parents Martin, 54, and Teresa, 55, and his brother Rudi, 22, and the attempted murder of his sister Marli at their De Zalze golf estate home three years earlier.
In that case, the Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the media’s right to freedom of expression and broadcasting in the public interest trumped Van Breda’s concern that he would not get a free and fair trial.
Mabandla, the former leader of the Ses’khona People’s Movement, was shot dead in Philippi in April by gunmen who stormed inside the old Browns Farm police station, where he was about to conduct a meeting concerning the relocation of railway shack dwellers.
He was reportedly hit by 17 bullets.
Two other people were shot and wounded, one of them a pregnant woman from Heinz Park. Mabandla’s family and supporters were out in full force at court yesterday, where they demanded bail be denied for the accused.
His wife Nyameka pleaded with Tshabile to cooperate with law enforcement agencies and piemp on the mastermind behind her husband’s death.
“These suspects are yet to be arrested. I learnt with shock and pain that killers were contracted and paid to kill my husband in the most brutal manner,” she said.