The family of murdered husband and father Xolani Kunene say they have lost faith in SAPS and the NPA’s ability to ensure justice and allege they were offered a plea deal in which the accused would not serve a prison sentence.

The family claim they lost faith in authorities due to ‘their persistent failure to provide any updates on the case’s progress’.

This is according to a statement released by AfriForum’s private prosecution unit spokesperson Barry Bateman, who said the family has turned to the unit for help after an investigating officer and prosecutor allegedly tried to convince them to accept a plea deal.

Bateman said the deal would have seen the accused, Buhle Lebohang Mabaso, plead guilty to culpable homicide in exchange for no prison time.

The murder

Kunene was shot outside an estate in Midrand in the early hours of August 13, 2022.

“Surveillance footage of the incident depicts two men sitting in a car, as the driver produces a firearm and shoots his passenger several times. While the man lies motionless on the ground, the driver walks around the car and shoots the man again in the head before fleeing in the car. Kunene, a father of two, died at the scene. Mabaso was arrested hours later, allegedly trying to flee Gauteng. He was granted bail a week later,” the statement reads.

Bateman added that besides the SAPS and NPA keeping the family in the dark, it is also unclear if critical evidence has been included in the docket.

#MidrandMurder Xolani Kunene’s family approached AfriForum’s Private Prosecuion Unit after the IO & prosecutor tried to convince them to accept the accused’s offer of R500k compensation in exchange for a culpable homicide conviction and suspended sentence. CCTV captured the… pic.twitter.com/POigHmSwYA

— Barry Bateman (@barrybateman) July 2, 2024

Family unhappy with plea deal offer

Kunene’s wife, Nosipho Nombela, along with his sister, Sindisiwe Mhlongo, reported that the investigating officer and prosecutor attempted to persuade them to agree to Mabaso’s proposal.

This arrangement involved Mabaso providing Kunene’s family with R500 000 as compensation for his death in return for a suspended sentence and a guilty plea to a charge of culpable homicide.

They declined the proposal.

The statement added that Mhlongo approached several NPA officials, including a Gauteng deputy director of public prosecutions, in April 2023 as she got frustrated with the lack of communication on the case.

“Despite a commitment to provide feedback, that was the last she heard from the senior NPA official,” Bateman added.

Mhlongo said they are concerned that the accused is able to ask the investigating officer to invite them to discuss compensation, but that ‘the prosecution doesn’t respond to any of our emails and concerns as a family’.

“I approached AfriForum because they’ve built a good brand out there for standing up for South African citizens and they were literally the only people when I went public on social media, who responded and gave us the ear and actually took the matter seriously even though my brother wasn’t famous,” she explained.

Communication is key

Bateman emphasises that prosecutors have a duty to provide updates to the families and loved ones of those affected by crime.

“The failure of the NPA to properly communicate not only pays lip service to their strategy of being victim-focused, but creates the opportunity for their conduct to be questioned.

“Having seen the surveillance footage of the incident, we see murder as the only charge the accused should plead to. We will closely monitor the case and ensure that all the evidence, including the surveillance footage, is presented to the court,” said Bateman.

The matter is expected to continue on July 29.