Evander Magistrate’s Court denies bail to suspect in taxi boss’ murder

The Evander Magistrate’s Court on October 15 again denied Elias Mhlanga bail. Mhlanga, together with two co-accused, Vuyisile Buthelezi and Khulekani Masondo, are facing a charge of murder in connection with the killing of Fannie Khumalo, a taxi boss from Kinross.

Khumalo was gunned down in November 2021 at his home in Thistle Grove while preparing his minibuses to transport commuters. Four armed men shot him seven times in the chest and he died on the spot.

Mhlanga was arrested in December 2021 next to the Kinross Police Station, while Buthelezi was nabbed in KwaZulu-Natal in December of the same year.

The police arrested Masondo in Gauteng in April 2022. This was Mhlanga’s third attempt to get bail after the Evander Magistrate’s Court denied him and Buthelezi bail.

Mhlanga changed his legal representative three times since his arrest. His new legal representative read his affidavit during his bail application. He was bringing this new application with new facts.

In his affidavit, Mhlanga stated he feels his constitutional rights are suppressed because of the prolonged time before the resuming of his trial.

This caused financial harm to his business and his family. Through his lawyer, Mhlanga told the court he contracted a chronic disease, high blood pressure, while in prison which needs urgent medical attention.

He also told the court through his affidavit that his children are suffering financially at tertiary institutions since he is in jail because they depend on him.

He also said the state does not have a strong case against him and he will be acquitted during trial.

Mhlanga also said a shortage of judges in the country caused the delay of their trial. He believes that also infringed on his rights as a citizen because he has been in custody for almost three years, but the trial has not yet started and his appeal to the Mpumalanga High Court was dismissed.

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Sergeant Amos Malatsi, the investigation officer in the case, refuted Mhlanga’s claims during the prosecutor’s cross-examination.

Malatsi told the court the police investigation was complete. He said the State has a strong case against the three.

Malatsi also said it was the first time he heard Mhlanga was suffering from high blood pressure. He said the country’s prisons have good medical facilities where Mhlanga’s illness can be treated.

He said Mhlanga’s taxi business is no longer operational and there is a National Student Financial Aid Scheme to assist learners, such as Mhlanga’s children, who seek to further their studies.

The detective also told the court that since Mhlanga was arrested, there was neither taxi violence nor instability.

Malatsi said there are no new facts or exceptional circumstances in Mhlanga’s bail application for him to be released on bail.

He read petitions from the Vukanini Taxi Association (Vukta) and Khumalo’s family against bail for Mhlanga.

The court gallery was packed with Vukta members who burst into applause when Magistrate Adri Roos denied Mhlanga bail.

Vukta chairman, Fanyana Sibanyoni, told members this outcome should be a lesson to others to refrain from conspiring to murder someone.

“Although we sometimes differ as humans, it is wrong to kill someone if they don’t agree with you,” said Sibanyoni.

Two taxi bosses, suspected of being involved with the murder of the late Khumalo, killed themselves before the police could arrest them in different places.

The first one allegedly shot himself dead at his home at eMbalenhle in December 2021, while the second one was traced to a house in Villiers.

When the police knocked on the door, they heard a gunshot. When the police members barged into the place, they found the man had shot himself and was declared dead on the scene. The case was postponed to July 27, 2026.