Nkandla man killed over witchcraft claims

Police spokesperson Colonel Jay Naicker said the suspects, aged between 17 and 19, were arrested in the early hours of Monday morning after they allegedly assaulted and killed Mgwazeni Delwa with sticks, knobkerries and stones at his home. It is believed the suspects accused Delwa of witchcraft.

“Nkandla police received the complaint of murder, and on arrival they found the body of Delwa with assault wounds on his head,” Naicker said.

One of the suspects – a minor – was transferred to a place of safety in Pinetown, while the other two suspects were remanded in custody until Monday.

KwaZulu-Natal provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Mmamonnye Ngobeni condemned the murder and attacks on senior citizens.

“We take accusations of witchcraft seriously because many people die because of callous remarks directed at our elder folk,” she said.

This after a Limpopo man was sentenced to three life terms in Polokwane High Court after being convicted of killing three elderly relatives he had accused of witchcraft in November last year. He had reportedly accused the three women of witchcraft after his younger brother was found dead, hanging from a tree, a few months earlier.

– Caxton News Service