Durban — The Durban High Court is expected to make a ruling in the case against two women charged with the murders of a Newlands East mother and child on Tuesday.
For more than a week, Acting Judge Sibisi has heard evidence led in the trial against Slindile Pamela Zamisa and her daughter Andile Zamisa who stand accused of kidnapping and murdering Smangele Simamane and her daughter Sbongakonke Mthembu.
The bodies of the victims were stuffed into a suitcase and dumped on Lwandle Drive in KwaDabeka in October 2020.
On Wednesday, the State and defence argued the merits of the case ahead of a ruling.
Evidence has been led in court by two State witnesses, Nomfundo True Love Ngcobo and Sthembiso Nicholas Lamula, who were convicted and sentenced for their part in the murders and disposal of the bodies.
Ngcobo is Zamisa’s (Slindile) stepdaughter and Lamula had been Zamisa’s (Slindile) lover.
Previously in court, Ngcobo (Nomfundo) testified that she and Andile had assaulted Simamane with their hands as well as a plastic pipe, four kettles of boiling water were poured on to her body, Andile strangled her with a rope while a teenager who was present pressed a shovel against her neck.
Further, the attack had stemmed from a prophecy by a relative that Simamane had a hand in the murder of Zamisa’s (Slindile) late husband Bheki Ngcobo.
The assault and murders all took place in the Zamisa home.
Testimony was that muti was allegedly found in the pocket of Sbongakonke’s nightgown and Zamisa (Slindile) had told the child to swallow the said muti; she told her to lie on the ground and pressed her foot against her neck.
State prosecutor advocate Gugu Xulu argued that State witnesses, Ngcobo, Lamula, Senzo Simamane and Fikile Nxumalo (aunt to Ngcobo) were credible witnesses.
“Lamula and Ngcobo and Nxumalo gave evidence that linked both accused directly to the offences … Lamula told the court that when he arrived at the accused’s house he saw accused one (Slindile) and two (Andile), and Nomfundo as well as a teenager and an unknown female seated on the sofa. He said he saw a girl who was the same height as the teenager.
“The State says that these two unknown females were the deceased … Accused one confirmed that on the day of the incident, Lamula came into the house; however she said it was after the deceased had left the house and accused one said she had not told Lamula that the deceased had been in the house. Lamula was a good witness, the State sees no reason why he would lie and implicate himself at the same time.” Xulu said.
Nomfundo did not just implicate the accused but went further to implicate herself.
“If she had an opportunity to lie she could have said anything to the police officers that would exclude her from being an accused. She was honest enough with the court saying she was present during the assault and when the deceased was burned with boiled water.
“There is a photo album admitted in as evidence that depicts injuries on the deceased and those are consistent with what Nomfundo testified, how Simamane was tortured and killed. The photos show Simamane in a suitcase with her legs sticking out of the black suitcase. These photos corroborated Nomfundo’s evidence.”
She said that Lamula and Nomfundo’s testimony was further corroborated by Nxumalo who did not know Sbongakonke and her mother and she was not in Newlands when the incident happened.
Xulu said that Nxumalo explained in detail how Sbongakonke and her mom were killed and how she was told this by the Zamisa women.
“If they did not tell her, how would she have known these details, it’s submitted that she was telling the truth.
“Both accused acted in common purpose from the time they lured the deceased into their home.”
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