'We were paid R150,000 to gun down SAMWU members'

By: Court News Reporter

The Thohoyandou High Court will have to rule on the admissibility of a confession made by one of the Radzuma brothers, Simon, in which he admits that they had received R150,000 to commit murder. The three siblings, Simon, Percy, and Ndivhuwo, face more than 40 charges, including the murder of two SAMWU officials from Vhembe in 2019.

During their appearance at the High Court sitting in Waterval this week, Capt Milingoni Tshilande of the SAPS was asked to testify. He read from the sworn affidavit made by Simon Radzuma shortly after his arrest.

In the statement, Simon says his elder brother, Percy, had asked him to accompany Percy to Biaba, in the Nzhelele area, to discuss a business deal with a certain person. Simon states in his affidavit that, at Biaba, they met the person, who informed them of the transaction, which involved killing two SAMWU members, Timson Musetsho and Ronald Mani.

Three days after the meeting, Simon and Percy drove around the area and spotted the car belonging to Timson Musetsho. They followed him along the Makwarela Stadium road until he arrived at his home in Makwarela Extension. Simon states in his affidavit that his brother then shot Musetsho as he got out of his car.

According to Simon’s statement, they were paid R150,000 for the killing. Percy gave him R50,000 and kept the remaining R100,000 for himself.

The defence is contesting this affidavit, arguing that it is not admissible as evidence. They claim that Simon was tortured and forced to make the statement, leading to a trial within a trial. At the time of  our going to press, Judge Thogomelani Tshidada had not yet made a ruling.

The continuous delays in finalising the case are putting significant stress on the families of the murdered men. A representative of the Musetsho and Mani families, Ms Rabelani Mphaphuli, said she was relieved that the trial was finally proceeding. She added that the families still wanted to uncover who the masterminds were behind hiring the killers.

“We are grateful for the support we are receiving from the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU)’s Vhembe region and the provincial executive committee. They have accompanied us to court every day, and we also want to thank Dr Tshenuwani Farisani for his continued support,” said Mphaphuli.

Mphaphuli added that the only challenge they were currently facing was the need to travel to the Waterval Magistrate’s Court daily as the Thohoyandou High Court was undergoing refurbishment and was therefore not available.

Date:18 October 2024

By:

Read: 193