King Goodwill Zwelithini addresses thousands of his subjects at an imbizo in Ulundi, 4 July 2018. The king called the imbizo to address the issue of communal land held under the Ingonyama Trust. Picture: ANA
Five suspects have been arrested in Pretoria on suspicion of being involved in the murder of the late 50-year-old Prince Lethukuthula Zulu.
Prince Lethukuthula Zulu’s body was found by security guards at his place at Graceland Residential Complex in Northworld, on 6 November 2020.
The suspects – four women, whose ages range from 27 to 42, and a 32-year-old man- were arrested on Friday night.
“This comes as a result of meticulous investigation and hard work by the Provincial Investigating team who, since the reporting of the incident at Honeydew SAPS about two weeks ago, were able to piece together bits and pieces of information that saw the initial inquest docket being changed to a murder case.
“Critical evidence that could easily have been overlooked, was effectively lifted from the crime scene by the SAPS forensic science experts. The processed evidence assisted the investigating team in establishing a possible linkage of the suspects to the crime,” said police spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters.
According to Peters, one of the suspects was found in possession of different substances, which were seized for further investigation against the possibility of the deceased and his business partner having been drugged before cash and other valuables were stolen from their place.
Several suspected stolen items were seized at the residences of the suspects.
“The investigation continues as police envisage to possibly uncover more evidence towards building a solid case that can stand in court. The investigation might also assist in establishing whether the suspects might have committed previous similar crimes where victims were drugged and robbed,” said Peters.
The suspects are expected to appear in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday. They are facing a charge of murder and theft.
The prince was Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini and Queen Sibongile MaDlamini’s eldest son and was next in line to the Zulu throne.
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