Five remanded for the killing of ‘AKA’ and ‘Tibz’
FIVE men appeared in court yesterday for the murder of South African rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and his friend, celebrity chef Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane.
Lindokuhle Mkhwanazi, 30; Lindani Ndimande, 30, Eddie Myeza, 22, Mziwethemba Gwabeni, 36, and Lindokuhle Ndimande, 29, were remanded in custody yesterday following their first appearance in the Durban Magistrate’s Court.
AKA and Tibz were shot and killed on February 10 last year outside the Wish Restaurant in Florida Road, Durban. All of the accused entered the dock wearing face masks and scarves yesterday, but the magistrate ordered that they remove them.
For a year, police were mum about the investigation, with many speculating it became a “cold case”, only for the police to announce this week that the seven suspects had been arrested.
KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi gave a detailed account of how and when the suspects were arrested, explaining how they were linked to the murders. This, as the hit on AKA was believed to cost around R800000.
The suspects were arrested between April 2023 and February this year by members of the Provincial Organised Crime Unit comprising Detective Warrant Officers Bob Pillay, Praved Maharaj, Denver Parbhu and Sunil Sukdeo.
The first person to be arrested was Myeza. The uMlazi resident, who is unemployed, was arrested on April 22, 2023.
In addition to this case, Myeza faces two counts of murder in another matter. The next arrest was that of Empangeni taxi boss Ndimande, who was apparently nabbed while at a gym. He also faces another count of murder in another case.
Mkhwanazi, a taxi boss from Mtubatuba on the KZN North Coast, was apprehended on December 14 and also faces a murder charge in a separate matter. Gwabeni, who is alleged to be the co-ordinator of the hit and a businessman with mining interests in Limpopo, lives in Pinetown, outside Durban, and handed himself over to police on Monday. He was reportedly on the run until his lawyer handed him over to police.
The five are due back in court on March 6.