TWO Zimbabwean nationals were last week robbed and brutally murdered and their car burnt to ashes in the Amanzimtoti area in Durban, South Africa, in a chilling incident that has left locals shell-shocked.
BY SILENCE CHARUMBIRA
The two, Mthabisi Ncube, also known as Mtee Billionaire Cube, and his business partner Lux Tendai Chingariri were reportedly in the company of two of their South African employees, who reportedly fled the scene on sensing danger.
According to one of their business associates, King Matanda, the duo had gone to the reserve area to burn vehicle looms to extract copper for resale when they were approached by about seven people, who started assaulting them.
“Mthabisi had been called by someone who wanted to sell him vehicle looms and he went to see the person. The next day, he went to burn the looms in the company of Lux and two South African workers and it was while they were burning the copper that they were attacked,” Matanda said.
“When we heard that they had been attacked, we tried to go to the area, but a mob of over 30 people threatened to stone us and we retreated and went to the police. When we came back with the police, they had been taken away and we searched from around 10am to 4pm, but could not find them.
“Their bodies were only found the following morning about 600 metres away from where their car had been burnt. The copper they had obtained had been looted and the spare wheel of the vehicle had been stolen.”
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Matanda said although it was not clear whether the case was linked to the xenophobic attacks that were concentrated in Durban, they speculated it could be a manifestation of another spate of attacks on foreigners.
Matanda said they suspected the community was complicit in the crime as they failed to provide information on their whereabouts. The autopsies, Matanda said, revealed that apart from the savage attacks that were evidenced by the multiple wounds, the duo had been shot as well.
“We were not told how many times they were shot, but it was the gunshots that killed them. They were bound and their bodies were butchered,” Matanda said.
“We had just purchased the vehicle, which they were using for R90 000 and the copper they had was worth around R10 000.”
Matanda further said they suspected the community had been watching their movements and were waiting for an opportunity to attack. “We are quite certain they were waylaid,” he said.
The two men were buried yesterday afternoon at Msasa Park Cemetery in Kwekwe.
