Five of the seven suspects who are allegedly linked to the murder of the late rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Thursday for a bail application.
The case was postponed to March 18.
All the accused will stay in detention until next week, at which point they will resume their applications after providing justification for their need for bail.
In court, the late Forbes’s father, Tony Forbes, also gave a statement to the media, expressing his doubts that the person responsible for his son’s murder was among those detained.
According to Forbes, the R800 000 proves that his son’s murder was deliberate and planned.
“The R800 000 is just confirmation that it was a big planned event. It was thought out, and the mastermind for me is someone who has access to that type of money and type of resource. I still, like I said last time, doubt that the mastermind is one of these people here. And the R800 000 further supports my view.”
According to Forbes, there is still cause for concern regarding the individual who may have orchestrated everything.
He previously stated that the banking system should be able to track where the money came from to assist in the investigation.
“I don’t think that the provincial commissioner was listening to the Q&A and the statement. I don’t think the commissioner meant the true mastermind; I think he was referring to the co-ordinator, and so the co-ordinator, if I understand things correctly, received the sum of money and shared it with the six other people.
“Where did that money come from? If it came from the banking system, then the banking system should be able to pick up the trail and find out where it came from. And continue the investigation. So is this the true mastermind? My gut feeling says no,” he said.
The suspects are now facing 12 charges after the State added two more counts pertaining to money laundering involving a payment of R800 000.
The five, identified as Lindokuhle Thabani Mkhwanazi, 30; Lindani Zenzele Ndimande, 35; Siyanda Eddie Myeza, 21; Mziwethemba Harvey Gwabeni, 36; and, Lindokuhle Lindo Ndimande, 29, face charges of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, and five counts of attempted murder.
The case of two more suspects, 29-year-old Lindokuhle Ndimande and his brother, 28-year-old Siyabonga Ndimande, who were apprehended in eSwatini, continues awaiting the brothers’ extradition bid.
The Star