/ 27 September 2012

Testimony delivers evidence against Mdluli in inquiry

This came across during the testimony of Ntsekiseng Ramogibe-Mbuyisa, the Ramogibe’s sister, who came to the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday wearing an armoured plate. Ramogibe-Mbuyisa said her mother, Sophia, told her that Samuel Dlomo had come to the parental home looking for Ramogibe. Dlomo wanted Ramogibe to go to the Vosloorus police station so that he could point out the scene where an earlier attempt had been made on his life. Sophia managed to convince a reluctant Ramogibe to go and see Dlomo at the station. Ramogibe complied and told his brother-in-law, Steven Jiyane, he was going to the police to file an attempted murder charge. This was the last time that anybody from the family saw him alive. Ramogibe-Mbuyisa then told the court that Dlomo drove Ramogibe to the scene in Mdluli’s green VW Golf and while there, Ramogibe was shot and killed after an unknown assailant took hold of Dlomo’s gun. The shooter then made off in Mdluli’s car. When she was told of her brother’s murder, she collapsed, said Ramogibe-Mbuyisa. “Mdluli’s car was found around the corner. We, as a family, knew this was the plan all along,” said Ramogibe-Mbuyisa. Same fate After Ramogibe was killed, Mdluli was seen driving the same green VW Golf up and down the street in front of the parental home “without saying anything”, said Ramogibe-Mbuyisa. “It was very traumatising for us,” she said. Following the rape of her sister Justina, Ramogibe-Mbuyisa said Mdluli phoned Sophia and advised her to stop pursuing Ramogibe’s murder case otherwise Ramogibe-Mbuyisa would suffer the same fate as her sister. While being cross-examined by Mdluli’s lawyer Ike Motloung, Ramogibe-Mbuyisa said she was not certain who was behind her brother’s murder but her suspicions led her to believe that Mdluli was involved. She said she not sure of the chain of events and had relied on members of her family for information. Her court testimony differed from the two police statements she had made in 1999 and 2010 and she changed her answers repeatedly while being questioned. “I put it to you: you’re lying … I don’t even think you know what you’re saying … Nobody can be relied upon; that’s the problem this court has,” said Paul Leisher, the legal representation of Colonel Nkosana Ximba.. The inquest is set to determine whether criminal charges should be re-instituted against Mdluli, Ximba, Dlomo and Lieutenant-Colonel Mtunzi-Omhle Mtunzi following the death of Ramogibe. The inquiry continues. This story was first published by the Mail & Guardian Online on September 10 2012. * Got a tip-off for us about this story? Email [email protected]

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