Two 50-year-old men facing charges, including two counts of murder, kidnapping, and malicious property damage are expected to apply for bail tomorrow.

Samuel Sheku and Bapsi Mnisi were arrested by the Mpumalanga Provincial Task Team on February 12, and made their latest appearance in the  KaBokweni Magistrate’s Court on Monday.

According to Mpumalanga police spokesperson Colonel Donald Mdhluli, the community of Nhlalakahle Trust in Masoyi experienced an incident in which six cows belonging to one resident were found slaughtered next to the bushes on December 29, 2023.

“It is also reported that some community members mobilised themselves and captured two young males, Sifiso Bulunga (39) and Satelo Maluka (37), residing in the same area. The two were reportedly accused of being involved in stock theft. It is alleged that the two were then tortured by these community members while their hands and legs were tied with some wires,” he says.

Mdhluli adds the police in Masoyi were notified about the incident, and a van was dispatched to the crime scene, only to experience a hostile reception from this group of people.

Further reports indicate there was a bakkie believed to have been used by Bulunga and Maluka. The angry mob torched the said bakkie, while the two were severely assaulted as well as burnt beyond recognition.

“A case was opened and the docket was assigned to the Mpumalanga Provincial Task Team under the leadership of the provincial commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Manamela. The team worked tirelessly on the investigation and arrested the two suspects, then charged them accordingly,” explains Mdhluli.