KWAZAKHELE MASS MURDER CASE POSTPONED FOR BAIL APPLICATION AND IDENTITY PARADE
The Gqeberha Magistrates’ Court postponed the case against five men accused of killing eight people in KwaZakhele to 19 April 2023, for a formal application. The men, who are still to be subjected to an identity parade, only gave instructions to one attorney in today’s hearing. The court had previously postponed the case to afford the accused time to secure a private attorney of their choice.
Mzwandile Mahambehlala, Siyabulela Funde, Luzuko Tsotsi, Luyanda April, and Sinaye Tyeni, are facing eight counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder, relating to the mass shooting that led to the deaths of eight people in KwaZakhele, Gqeberha in January 2023. According to the police, two armed men entered the premises in Makanda Street on 29 January 22023 and shot at guests attending a birthday celebration. Eleven people were shot at during the attack, seven people were certified dead on the scene, one succumbed to his injuries in hospital, and three sustained serious injuries.
Mahambehlala was the first to be arrested on 03 March 2023, in a house in Walmer Township, Gqeberha. His four co-accused were arrested weeks later in Peelton, near Qonce. They were joined together in the dock, but an identity parade could not be conducted because they were not all legally represented. The court ordered that the identity parade be held on 18 April 2023, and a formal bail application commence on the following day.
The NPA is opposing bail on the matter, to which a senior prosecutor has been assigned.
