ANC murder accused abandons bail

Independent Newspapers

Three customary wives have taken their tussle over the body and burial of their dead husband to a Pretoria court.

KwaZulu-Natal - A man accused of killing two ANC branch leaders abandoned his bail application in the Port Shepstone Magistrate's Court on Wednesday.

Samuel Cele, 34, had been expected to apply for bail, but his lawyer Dru Ramsamy told Magistrate Karen Scheepers that the “bail application shall be temporarily abandoned and considered at a later stage”.

His appearance came a day after the Pietermaritzburg High Court sentenced his co-accused Sifiso Khumalo, 31, to 22 years for the murder of Dumisani Malunga.

The two were charged with the murders of ANC branch secretary Bheki Chiliza and chairman Dumisani Malunga.

Malunga, 42, and Chiliza, 39, were shot dead while driving in the Oshabeni area at about 9.30pm last Sunday. Khumalo and Cele were arrested the next day.

Khumalo pleaded guilty, and in a statement claimed Cele had arranged for a hit man to kill Malunga.

However, unbeknown to them, the hit man found Malunga and Chiliza together and decided to kill them both.

On Tuesday, Colonel Vincent Mdunge said police were still looking for the assassin, but knew who it was.

The Port Shepston Magistrate's Court was packed to capacity with ANC supporters and journalists.

Some of the supporters carried placards that read: “No Bail, Rot in Jail” and “Political Cowards Must Rot in Jail”.

The case was postponed to November 14 to allow the police to complete their investigation and for the setting of a high court date.