Man wanted for murder in Eswatini gets life in SA

By Khulile Thwala

A man who fled to South Africa after allegedly killing someone in Eswatini has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a woman in a graveyard in Mpumalanga.

July Hezekiel Ndwandwa, 33, was sentenced at the Barberton Regional Court last week for the 2019 murder of Khulile Mahumane, 29. Mpumalanga police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, said the Barberton police and paramedics received information on 20 May 2019 about a woman’s body that had been found at a Grayvellie graveyard.

“On further examination, police discovered that the victim had two gunshot wounds – one on the chest and the other on the right hand”. Mohlala said the victim was identified as Khulile Mahumane. News24 reports that preliminary investigations revealed that Ndwandwa was the last person seen with Mahumane.

Mohlala said: “During the investigation, police discovered that the accused had allegedly committed murder in the Kingdom of Eswatini, and there was a warrant for his arrest from the said neighbouring country with regard to the murder case. Though details of the murder remain with the police across the border, the accused was sentenced by the court to life imprisonment for the murder of Mahumane. He was further declared unfit to possess a firearm”.

Mpumalanga police commissioner, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela welcomed the sentence imposed on Ndwandwa and thanked the investigation team, the prosecution team, and the judiciary for their hard work.