Police seek reinstatement of charges against Sydenham massacre suspect - IOL
Bongani Mfanomncane Dlamini who was charged for the murder of nine people who were gunned down at Palmiet Road informal settlement in 2021 has had his charges withdrawn.
Image: Doctor Ngcobo African News Agency (ANA).
The State has withdrawn the nine murder charges against Bongani Mfanomncane Dlamini after prosecutors interviewed witnesses, but police say they are working to have them reinstated.
Dlamini was arrested in connection with the brutal 2021 killings of nine people in Sydenham.
Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the spokesperson of the National Prosecuting Authority said, charges were withdrawn following further investigations into the matter.
In 2021, six people were shot and killed at a house in the Palmiet Road informal settlement in Sydenham. A short distance from the scene, three more people were allegedly shot and killed in two separate incidents.
Dlamini was arrested on September 24 and made his first appearance in the Durban Magistrates’ Court the following day. The matter was postponed to October 2 for an identification parade, legal representation and a bail investigation.
However, on September 29, the State withdrew all nine murder charges against Dlamini.
“After interviewing witnesses and having discussed the matter with the control prosecutor, the decision is to withdraw all charges against the accused,” the charge sheet states.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said SAPS had noted the withdrawal of the charges.
“The suspect was arrested through a warrant of arrest and police will study the court’s reasons for withdrawal and work with the prosecution to have the charges reinstated,” he said.
Netshiunda said Dlamini’s arrest had also led to another breakthrough in the investigation. He said investigators had uncovered that another suspect, believed to be a mastermind and shooter in the 2021 Sydenham mass murder, is already serving a sentence for an unrelated murder.
“The requisition process for him to be formally charged is underway and he will be brought to court soon,” Netshiunda said.
One of the suspects previously linked to the mass killings is also believed to have since died.
