In December the Pietermaritzburg High Court convicted and sentenced Sandile Patrick Khumalo and Sihle Mbhele both aged 27 for murder. The sentencing stems from an incident that occurred on September 29, 2015 in the Magagangozi area, Bergville where Samson Mbuyane Khumalo, 65, was killed when he had just arrived home.
That night, the family inside the house heard gunshots and they stayed inside because they were too afraid to venture outside. What they did not realise is that the deceased’s nephew, Sandile Patrick Khumalo, and his friend, Sihle Mbhele had just committed murder.
There was animosity between the nephew and the uncle which resulted in a feud. The accused had waited for the deceased to arrive home and had shot him once in the head. They bundled the body into the deceased’s vehicle and drove to another spot where they dumped the body. The vehicle was then driven to Ngoba area where it was left abandoned.
The deceased’s firearm was taken and buried at the friend’s homestead. Police were called to the deceased’s home after family members discovered blood outside the house.
Police began to search for deceased and on September 30, his vehicle was recovered at Ngoba area. The family suspected that the nephew may have had something to do with the deceased’s disappearance and began to question him about it.
On October 10, the nephew finally let a family member know where they had dumped the body. Police were alerted and the body was recovered in the area near Little Switzerland. Both men were arrested and the deceased’s firearm was recovered from where it had been buried. Accused were both charged and convicted. They were both sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for murder and seven years for theft, unlawful possession of firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition.
The KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni applauded Ladysmith detectives for presenting a thoroughly investigated docket for prosecution. ”We are pleased that these two cold blooded murderers are in prison where they belong,” she said.
