ESTCOURT KZN: Cop killer gets life imprisonment
The accused was sentenced to life imprisonment for various charges including murder, robbery and possession of an unlicensed firearm
Two years after Constable Nkosinathi ‘Wonderboy’ Khumalo was murdered in a hijacking in the central business district, his killer has been sentenced to life imprisonment.
Constable Khumalo, who worked for the Estcourt Stock Theft Unit, was driving in his white VW Polo in Alexandra Street on the evening on May 11, 2019, when he came under gunfire. The officer, who was off-duty at the time, sustained several gunshot wounds and died at the scene while in his vehicle.
READ MORE HERE: Estcourt police officer killed in suspected hijacking
His lifeless body was discarded at the roadside before the hijackers sped off in his vehicle. Using a tracking device, police were able to locate the car at a smallholding outside Weenen. A combined contingent of police attached to the Estcourt Stock Theft Unit, Newcastle Public Order Policing (POP), Uthukela Crime Intelligence, as well as Visible Policing (Vispol) units made their way to Nhlawe in Weenen to apprehend the suspects.
“Officers were in the process of arresting the suspects for the murder when they were met with a hail of bullets. Officers retaliated, fatally wounding one suspect, while another was arrested,” explained police spokesperson Warrant Officer Basheer Khan.
32-year-old suspect Njabulo Wandile Mvelase was subsequently charged for murder. After a thorough investigation, the case wrapped up recently. The accused was sentenced to life imprisonment for various charges including murder, robbery and possession of an unlicensed firearm.
The acting commissioner of the Uthukela Cluster, Brigadier Francis Bantham, has commended the team involved in the arrests, as well as the investigating officer.
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