Drunken argument over being called ‘inkwenkwe’ ends in cop getting 15 years for murder

The Mount Fletcher Regional Court has sentenced a police officer to 15 years imprisonment for the alcohol-fuelled murder of his acquaintance over being called inkwenkwe (a boy).

Forty-two-year-old policeman Busikhaya Zinto murdered 35-year-old Mthibeli Lehana during a night out in Fanta Location, Eastern Cape, on 25 November 2019.

The officer, Lehana and their friends were drinking alcohol while travelling in the same vehicle when an argument broke out over one calling the other inkwenkwe, meaning boy in isiXhosa. Some people in Xhosa culture may deem the term derogatory.

Argument over being called ‘inkwenkwe’

“While the vehicle was still in motion, Zinto took out a firearm and shot the deceased on the left side of the ribs,” National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said in a statement.

Due to their intoxication and the loud music in the car, the other occupants did not see the shooting and simply heard the gunshot and smell.

When the driver stopped the vehicle, Zinto got out of the vehicle, leaving his work firearm inside, and he disappeared.

ALSO READ: Off-duty EMPD officer shot dead outside KwaThema spaza shop

Those who were in the vehicle rushed the injured friend to the hospital, but he later succumbed to his gunshot wound. The police officer was later arrested at his home.

During Zinto’s trial, the state led the evidence of two witnesses who were inside the vehicle when Lehana was shot and a police officer who took gunpowder residue from the people inside the vehicle.

The officer pleaded not guilty, placing the blame on the other passengers in the car.

Police officer contradicted himself

“Under cross-examination by regional court prosecutor Zonke Maranjana, the accused contradicted himself and changed his version on many occasions to paint a picture that he was not on good terms with one of the witnesses who was in the car at the time. The court dismissed his version as improbable,” Tyali said.

The Mount Fletcher Regional Court subsequently sentenced the officer and also declared him unfit to possess a firearm.

Barry Madolo, the director of public prosecution (DPP) for the Eastern Cape, warned that the prosecution will always make sure that those who commit violent crimes receive the appropriate punishment and that Zinto should have known better as a police officer.

“The NPA daily prosecutes hundreds of such matters that affect the safety and wellbeing of our communities and to ensure justice for victims of crime,” Tyali said.

NOW READ: Maile calls for men to lead the fight against GBV