MBONDZELA MURDER SUSPECTS SPEAK

MBABANE – The three men, who were arrested for the murder of the Mbondzela Farm security guard, say they were forced to accompany his abductors, but did not participate in killing him.

The accused are Linda Nsibande (27), Muzi Mdluli (30) and Sikhumbuzo (35) all from Mbondzela, under Chief Mthunzi. They have been charged with eight counts. The offences are of murder, attempted murder, kidnapping and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The accused persons were arrested by Gege police. They appeared at the magistrates court and were remanded in custody, pending committal to the High Court. They have filed an application for bail, which will be heard on Friday.

Narrating events that led to the disappearance of the security guard, Vuyani Mkhwanazi, Linda informed the court that in October 2023, at Mbondzela Farm, water pipes to the homes of Mfaniseni Nsibande, Guduza Nsibande, Party Nsibande, Sipho Nkosi, Hebson Nhleko and Petros Mdluli, were damaged allegedly by the farm owner’s security guards. He said the security guards alleged that they had been authorised by Gege police to destroy the pipes. “Indeed, after the destruction, Gege police did not arrest them, despite having received reports of these unlawful acts from the farm dwellers,” Linda alleged.

The veracity of these allegations is still to be tested in court. The applicants are represented by Ben J. Simelane.He informed the court that on May 5, 2024, the security guards once again arrived and destroyed water pipes, but managed to destroy Nkosi’s and those of Mciniseli Nhleko.
According to Linda, the security guards were about 11 in number and were assaulted by members of the community. “I and others, including Mciniseli and second applicant (Muzi) were fingered as having assaulted four of the security guards. “I am surprised that we are now charged with having assaulted six of eleven security guards.

Accept

“I deny having assaulted any of them and state that it was the whole community that assaulted them. I do accept that I was present at the scene.
Mciniseli Nhleko has now been released on bail at Nhlangano Magistrates Court, having paid E1 000,” Linda submitted. He also submitted that after the assault of the security guards by the community, the farm owner responded by demolishing the homes of Petros and Mciniseli, without any form of authorisation or court order. “After the destruction of the homes, I found five boys at Sipho Nkosi’s home, whom I did not know, but one was known as Bazooka and the other Mvuselelo.

“ I know no further details about these boys, except that they knew Swane Shongwe, who is a granddaughter to Sipho Nkosi and stayed at his home. “Almost a week after the demolition, I was with the second applicant when we saw the deceased in count one (Mkhwanazi), who was armed with a gun, being chased by the five boys. “The deceased fired four shots at his pursuers, but did not hit anyone.  “The boys then started hitting the deceased with stones and disarmed him.“The deceased was a security guard at the farm,” Linda narrated. He informed the court that he and Muzi tried to leave the scene, but they were threatened with assault, as they had witness Mkhwanazi being assaulted.

According to Linda, one of the boys had a revolver. He said they were threatened by the five men, who were assaulting Mkhwanazi. “The deceased was taken to a place next to a river, where he was stripped naked and assaulted by the boys and his clothes thrown into a river and that is why I and the second applicant, were able to help the police retrieve the deceased’s clothes from the river. “The boys ordered us to leave the scene with the two of them, including the one who was carrying the deceased’s gun. After about 30 minutes, the remaining three joined us and that was the last I saw the deceased.”

Linda said he and the second applicant never partook in the assault of Mkhwanazi. He said, therefore, it could not be said that they acted in common purpose with those who assaulted and perhaps killed the deceased as alleged. He said they could not rescue the security guard from the assault, because even ‘our presence was forced, as they stated that if we left at that time, we could tell the police’.

Reunited

“After we had reunited, the boys stated that in order to avoid a situation where the assault on the deceased was reported to the police, they were going with me and the second applicant.  “The second applicant pleaded with them and stated that he was going to work, he would lose his job if he was absent.  “They let him go. However, they knew my situation, that I worked at Sipho Nkosi’s home and refused to release me.
“We drove around in a Honda Fit, black in colour and I was released the following day.” The accused persons said their defence was good and valid. He stressed that they never took part in the murder of Mkhwanazi. Linda said he had been advised that the police had filed a notice in the Times of Eswatini of June 25, 2024, seeking information on the whereabouts of the four men responsible for the assault of Mkhwanazi.

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