LAWYER FOUND DEAD IN FLAT, STAGED SUICIDE SUSPECTED

MBABANE - In what is believed to be a staged suicide, a lawyer was yesterday found dead in his house at Fonteyn.

The body of Zwelakhe Hlophe (29) of Hawane, who is the son of Supreme Court Judge Nkululeko Hlophe, and Industrial Court Judge Lorraine Hlophe was found in the bathroom of his flat by some of his neighbours on Monday at 6:30pm. His body was found in a sitting position between a toilet seat and bathtub, with a pyjama belt tied around his neck and the burglar bars of a window behind the toilet. Zweli’s body was found dressed in black trousers and a waistcoat, a white shirt and a bib, which is how lawyers dress when appearing at the High Court. According to a source, Zweli, as he was popularly known, was supposed to meet his mother in town, but he did not show up. His mother, according to the source, proceeded to his rented flat at Fonteyn and found the burglar door ajar. The door is said to have been locked and when Judge Lorraine called him on his cellphone, he did not pick up.

Challenge

The source also said the thought was that Zweli probably had financial challenges at the time and his mother had transferred a certain amount of money to him via Mobile Money, which he had not withdrawn when he met his death. This, according to the source, was an indicator that he did not leave the house since then. The deceased is suspected to have been in the house at the time. Those who discovered his body are said to have found the door unlocked. This was despite the fact that his mother had found the door locked on Saturday and the burglar door slightly opened. The source stated that on Sunday, they noticed that the burglar door was still in the same position and on Monday, they opened the door and found that it was not locked. The question is, according to the source; who had then unlocked the door and where did the key come from?

In Zweli’s motor vehicle, there were some of his clothes, some of which were torn, including a black waistcoat, and a mud-stained bib, as well as a short wooden stick. Inside the house, the wardrobe appeared to have been ransacked and some of his clothes were missing. Police, who attended to the scene, took cupcakes and a Coca-Cola soft drink which was in a two-litre container. The investigators also took Zweli’s cellphone, which might have information that could lead them to a breakthrough in their investigations. Zweli’s death was confirmed by his father, who said they were leaving everything in the hands of the police to do their investigations. It has been reliably gathered that a post–mortem will be conducted at the Mbabane Government Hospital to determine the actual cause of his death.

A number of lawyers took to social media after learning about the death of Zweli, and described him as a jolly, hardworking lawyer, who was willing to assist anyone. Among those who were found at the scene yesterday, was Senior Lawyer Mangaliso Magagula of Magagula & Hlophe Attorneys, where the deceased worked. Others were the deceased’s grandfather and sister Zinhle.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: