Gunfire echoes at Khulekani Seoko’s funeral in his home village, Mhlambanyatsi
Seoko, who was related to a City of Mbombela traffic officer Khanyisile Nyalunga, who was allegedly involved in a failed cash-in-transit robbery in Hazyview, had several pending cases against him, including armed robbery, possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of ammunition, and hijacking.
Khulekani Seoko, better known as Mbhunu, was buried amid countless bullets being fired into the sky on Saturday August 19. Seoko was the brother of a City of Mbombela traffic officer, Khanyisile Nyalunga, who’s currently in police custody after a recently failed CIT robbery in Hazyview.
Run-ins with the law are nothing new for the family. According to the Mpumalanga National Prosecuting Authority’s spokesperson, Monica Nyuswa, Seoko had pending cases ranging from armed robbery, possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of ammunition, and hijacking against him. No convictions were made before his death.
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Seoko’s body had been discovered by a passer-by on the Numbi road near Salubindza Village in the early hours of August 9.
His body was riddled with bullets. His funeral was held at his home village in Mhlambanyatsi in the Masoyi area. Despite his history, his family described him as a loving person who always cared for his family. They said he had never told his family about how he made a living, they only heard it from people.
“To us he was a son, brother and father to his kids. He never deserved to be killed that way. We believe the police will catch his killers. We are distancing ourselves from benefiting from the money that he was making on his hustle. To us, he was not the monster that the public has labelled him. We are aware that he was still awaiting a court case, but he was not yet convicted. We are going to miss his presence among us,” said family members.
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During the funeral, some of his friends who lived with him, fired random shots into the air. This practice has been witnessed at many funerals and has become severely concerning to the police. They were firing in full view of mourners and officers who had been deployed to monitor the funeral.
Some of his friends said they will remember him for his bravery and fearlessness and the respect he always had for the elders.
“He was never forced to live the life he was living, he chose it himself. He lived his life to the fullest and we will forever miss him. We hope the police will catch the people who killed him,” they said.
A provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, said no one has been arrested yet.
