Zululand traditional leaders face charges of attempted murder

TWO AmaKhosi facing serious charges including attempted murder were released on R1 000 bail at the Empangeni Regional Court yesterday.

The traditional leaders – Inkosi Zenzo K Zungu of KwaMadlebe Traditional Council and Inkosi Eric Khoza of uThungulu Traditional Council were arrested on Friday by members of the National Intervention Unit from Durban.

Inkosi Zungu was apprehended in the Empangeni CBD while Inkosi Khoza was arrested at his residence in eShowe.

The AmaKhosi face an additional charge of conspiracy to commit crime.

A third accused, taxi driver – Nkosinathi Shezi (37), who faces the same charges, was also released on R1 000 bail.

Shezi, who is dubbed an accomplice in the case, pleaded for bail on Monday adding that he ran a tuck shop and needed to support his family.

In their bail plea, Inkosi Zungu said apart from his traditional leadership, he also ran several businesses while Inkosi Khoza said he was a full-time traditional leader and had to look after his property, livestock and family.

There was a strong police presence at the court as supporters of the AmaKhosi rallied outside and chased journalists from the scene.

KZN MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Nomusa Dube-Ncube reacted with shock to the news of the arrests on Monday.

‘Our primary concern at this point is about the image of the institution of traditional leadership which our department is doing its utmost best to uphold,’ said Dube-Ncube.

‘These arrests have the potential to tarnish the way the public perceives our traditional leaders. The law must now take its course and we are confident that it will. We are naturally concerned about the incident and we urge the public to await the outcome of the investigation before jumping to conclusions as they should in every other similar case,’ Dube-Ncube said.

The investigation into the alleged crimes reportedly dates back to 2006.

The case has been remanded to 23 April at the Empangeni Regional Court.