The Mthunzini circuit court sentenced three men to life imprisonment for the murder of a minibus taxi owner in Maphumulo, KwaZulu-Natal, two years ago.
Phumlani Mjaza, Musa Nelson Phahla and Sabelo Enoch Mdletshe were also convicted of robbery with aggravating circumstances on top of the life imprisonment sentence. Mjaza was handed a further 10 years prison sentence for unlawful possession of a firearm.
“The men knew the victim, Nduduzo Ntuli, owned a minibus taxi, which he used to transport school children. Ntuli used the vehicle for this sole purpose and did not belong to any taxi association. In June 2020, while Ntuli was parking the vehicle at his home in the Ndaba area of Maphumulo, he was accosted by three men,” said National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisoon-Kara.
The suspects wanted to take his minibus taxi and he attempted to fight them off. The men shot Ntuli in the head, then tried to remove his body from the vehicle so they could drive it away, she added.
But Ntuli’s father heard the gunshots. He immediately went out to investigate and successfully managed to hold down one of the suspects who shot his son. The other two accomplices fled the scene, said Ramkisoon-Kara.
“Mdletshe was easily identified and thus arrested, as he was a relative of Ntuli. Phahla was arrested after police received information about his whereabouts,” Ramkisoon-Kara added.
“A case of murder was opened and investigated by the Maphumulo police. The detective who was allocated the docket worked around the clock to ensure the perpetrators are brought to book.”
The three suspects were handed life imprisonment sentences with Mjaza handed life sentence for murder, 10 years for attempted hijacking and a further 10 years for unlawful possession of a firearm.
Source: The South African, Sowetan Live, Times Live, image from The South African: iStock
