A Liswati has been arrested in South Africa in connection with the brutal murder of six men at an informal settlement at Umlazi, Durban.
According to a statement issued by the office of the provincial commissioner of the South African Police Service (SAPS) in KwaZulu-Natal yesterday, the suspect identified as Melusi Dlamini was arrested in Krugersdorp, Gauteng, on Friday.
SAPS said Dlamini allegedly committed the mass shooting at Umlazi’s V/6 Section on August 17, 2024.
The neigbouring police service said they believed that the Umlazi murders were revenge-motivated, with the Xhosa-speaking victims having previously been involved in altercations with Eswatini nationals.
“Relentless investigation by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Murder and Robbery Unit detectives has resulted in the arrest of a 28-year-old foreign national for the murder of six people. On the night of the killings, six men were drinking alcohol with three women when they were approached by two men claiming to be looking for cigarettes. After being told that no one was selling, the men left, only to return moments later. They instructed the three women to lie down as they fired shots at the male victims. Six men were shot and declared dead on the scene,” said SAPS spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda.
Dlamini was charged with six counts of murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, and unlawful possession of ammunition.
He appeared at the Umlazi Magistrate’s Court on Monday, where he abandoned bail.
The matter was postponed to August 14.
Netshiunda further revealed that the police were still on the lookout for the second suspect.
“Investigations are underway in search of the second suspect,” he said.
The SAPS also called on members of the public who may have information about the second suspect to come forward.
Meanwhile, Eyewitness News reported that KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) police have intensified the search for the remaining suspect in a murder that left six people dead in Umlazi, following the tracking down of one of the two suspects in Krugersdorp, Gauteng, last week.
Dlamini is said to have been on the SAPS’s wanted list since 2024 when he and an accomplice allegedly shot and killed six men in what was believed to have been a revenge attack.
On August 18, 2024, the SAPS said their reports indicated that three men were seated outside their rented accommodation consuming alcohol when unknown suspects arrived and opened fire at them.
The SAPS said the suspects proceeded to the landlord’s house where they shot him and another man who was also inside the house.
“The suspects also shot another man on the pathway. All six victims, aged between 20 and 40, were declared dead at the scene,” reads part of the statement.
This is not an isolated incident, other locals had previously been implicated in murder cases in the neighbouring country.
For instance, a young man from Nhlangano was once implicated in the murder of two SA unionists, who were vocal in protests against the looting of the then VBS Mutual Bank.
However, he was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing after spending some time behind bars in that country.
Another one was successfully extradited to face murder related charges in Mbombela, after being accused of stabbing two friends at a night club. One person died while the friend survived during the alleged attack.
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