By Bahle Gama
In his urgent bail application, murder suspect Leon Sibandze says that being in custody leaves his business to be vulnerable.
On November 27, the socialite allegedly stabbed businessman Hamza Muhammed with an okapi knife once on the neck at Buka in Ezulwini killing him on the spot.
In his bail application, Sibandze states that his continued incarceration will jeopardise his business as he is the only one who knows its operations, “to the great prejudice of myself and those dependent on me. I am further advised and verily believe that by its very nature, bail is urgent.”
Sibandze states that though he admits to stabbing Muhammed, he will not plead guilty at trial since he did not have the intention of committing the offence he is charged with.
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“In actual fact, once evidence is led in the matter, I am of the strong belief that I will not be convicted for murder,” he states.
He further elaborated on the events that took place on the day before the stabbing incident, where he stated that on November 26, 2022, he imbibed alcohol with his friends which resulted in him drinking overnight.
Sibandze submitted that on the day in question, he was heavily intoxicated and high from the continuous intake of marijuana that began the previous night.
He states that he does recall entering the shop at Buka operated by the deceased, however, due to the level of intoxication he does not recall what really transpired that resulted in him and Muhammed having an altercation that eventually led to his stabbing.
“I must mention that after I realised that he had been accidentally stabbed, I quickly went outside the shop and boarded a kombi with the intention of heading to the police station to report what befell me on the day,” he states.
However, the kombi was reportedly blocked by members of the public who ordered him to alight from it and was heavily assaulted until he was rescued by police officers and was arrested on the scene.
In the application, Sibandze further states that he is a Swati citizen which clearly indicates that he is not a flight risk, and pending the finalisation of the matter he will remain in the country with all bail conditions imposed.
“In fact, the investigating officer bears testimony to the fact that I fully cooperated with them during the investigations. I submit that my admission to bail will not jeopardise the Criminal Justice System in the country,” he states.
Sibandze was granted bail of E15 000, E3 000 is to be paid in cash and the rest as surety.
