Life imprisonment for KZN cop-killers

The Mtunzini High Court convicted and sentenced two men for the murder of a police officer in KZN in January last year, said provincial police.

KZN SAPS spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said both accused were sentenced on May 17 after the judge heard how they killed a policewoman, Constable Senzeni Zibuyisile Msipha, 36, last year.

Zwane said Lucky Masinga, 35, and Vincent Zikhali, 38, were sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, 15 years imprisonment for armed robbery, and five years imprisonment for kidnapping.

Msipha, who was stationed at Mtunzini police station, was off-duty at the time of her killing, Zwane added.

The third accused, Siyabonga Khumalo, 29, is already serving his sentence of 39 years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to murder on April 18 2018, said the provincial SAPS spokesperson.

“On 31 January 2018, Nyoni police officers, in KZN, attended to a complaint of what appeared to be an accident along the P266 road in their policing precinct. On arrival at the scene, they noticed a vehicle which was on fire and found the driver burnt beyond recognition. A case of culpable homicide was opened at Nyoni police station. In the meantime, Gingindlovu police station was investigating a missing person docket after Constable Msipha was reported missing from her home at Gingindlovu. She was last seen alive with her boyfriend and did not return home.

“Following an intensive investigation by Nyoni detectives, they managed to link the missing person docket with the culpable homicide case that they were investigating. Her boyfriend, Lucky Masinga and his friends, Vincent Zikhali and Siyabonga Khumalo, were arrested. The docket was changed to murder after evidence indicated that the victim was killed before she was burnt. Results of DNA samples taken from the remains of the burnt body concluded that it was that of Constable Msipha,” Zwane said.

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