The defendant told the court that he was the one who shot the policeman because he had been showing violence and danger to their lives and when he spoke he sounded like he was immersed in Pharaoh’s camps.
This is the evidence presented by Mzikayifani Khayelihle Ndebele who was 18 when he shot Constable Zolile Zuma, who was off duty, during the library on July 13, 2021 in Tshelimnyama, Mariannhill. Zuma was found dead in his VW Polo car after he was shot by Mzikayifani.
Dr Wandile Mbhele, who examined Zuma’s body, told the court that the deceased was burned alive and died of burns and smoke inhalation. Mzikayifani was being questioned by his lawyer, Mr Musa Chiliza, when he told Judge Carol Sibiya of the Durban High Court, yesterday, admitting that he shot two times at Zuma and fell to the ground. Chiliza first asked the judge to bring Mzikayifani forward because the State failed to provide the court with conclusive evidence against him. The judge rejected this request, saying that the defendant must answer what was accused of.
Mzikayifani revealed that he grabbed the gun pointed at Zuma with his hands, and then they got into a fight with the deceased at a distance and it ended up being near him and he ended up shooting. He said that he also fell to the ground after being caught by Zuma’s hand and when he tried to stand up, the third bullet was accidentally shot in the knee by his uncle who was surrounding the deceased. He also revealed that he fired two more shots in the air at two men who had been traveling with Zuma in a car, and they hit the ground. When he was testifying, Mzikayifani would keep his head down, speak quietly until the judge asked him to raise his voice, and when he woke up, he blink several times in one direction. He predicted that this incident happened suddenly and he predicted a time of 20 seconds.
Mzikayifani was remanded in custody after being denied bail as he was charged with two counts of attempted murder. He was arrested with the second defendant, Mr Sibusiso Ndlela, who is charged with kidnapping and murder. It is said that Mzikayifani, his uncle and Siyanda were lured by Zuma’s car after robbing people who had been stealing alcohol from one of the places in Marianhill. It turns out that Zuma was not working on the day he was killed drinking alcohol and grilling meat with his cousins and neighbors.
It is said that he tried to stop the three who were traveling in a Kia van and fired a gun on Nkazimulo street until he found them standing at the gate of Mzikayifani’s uncle’s house. Mzikayifani said Zuma pointed a gun at them and told them that they were getting used to bad people. He says that he was burning them so that they could run away with the alcohol of the people who had asked them to transport them. Ndlela is expected to present his testimony today.
