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MANZINI – A senior citizen purported to be a witch was assaulted and killed after a traditional healer claimed he had a list of people he wanted to kill.

6ibonelo %hanana 'lamini

, of Makhungutsha, under &hief /ukhwabitsi, was charged with murder as he was accused of allegedly assaulting 6amuel .wayibane 9ilakati with a knobkerrie all over the body. +e was also accused of stabbing the deceased with a sharp object in the head.

It was gathered that 'lamini came across the deceased near a river at Makhungutsha. The accused was said to have been walking with his cousin on the opposite direction when they came across 9ilakati, with whom they e[changed heated words.

$ccording to sources, the de ceased had questioned the pair on their destination as it was at night. Instead of answering him, it was said the accused’s cousin

&aleb questioned the senior citizen on same.

This reportedly agitated 9ilakati and he was said to have questioned &aleb on why he was asking him his destina tion. It was alleged that when 'lamini’s cousin was passing ne[t to 9ilakati, the deceased assaulted him with a knobkerrie.

6ources claimed that &aleb retaliated by punching 9ilakati with a fist in his face, which led to the deceased falling to the ground.

It was said that as 9ilaka ti lay on the ground, he did not give up on the fight as he kicked and fought back.

The sources claimed it was at this point wherein 'lamini purportedly joined the fight and assisted &aleb in beating the senior citizen. It was pur ported that 'lamini picked the knobkerrie which 9ilakati had been carrying and used it to assault him.

Assaulted

The sources claimed that the pair had assaulted 9ilakati as they had been angry towards him as their family members had died and nobody was left in the homesteads.

It was claimed that the pair blamed 9ilakati for the demise of their family members as their suspicions were that he bewitched them.

It was gathered that the pair believed that they were ren dered orphans because 9ilakati allegedly bewitched their fam ily members. $ccording to the sources, 'lamini was forced to stay at his maternal home after the demise of his mother, while his uncle’s homestead was left vacant.

It was alleged that after his uncle returned from Johannes burg in 0 , he constructed a huge homestead and upon completion, his wife suppos edly stayed for three days in the house before mysteriously dying.

The sources claimed that lead ing to this, between 0 0 0 , 9ilakati had been supposedly in formed to vacate Makhungutsha by .aNdinda Umphakatsi, on allegations of witchcraft.

The sources supposed that the deceased, when informed to vacate the area, a provision for transport was availed to him in order to courier his belongings.

+owever, the sources sup posed that following the ruling by the royal kraal, the deceased never vacated the area.

Wanted

They claimed that leading to his demise, 9ilakati supposedly had a list of people he allegedly wanted dead.

It was gathered that while one of 'lamini’s uncles was sick, he supposedly consulted a tra ditional healer who informed him that 9ilakati allegedly had the list of people he wanted dead. It was gathered that the uncle informed family members that after his demise, another would die as they were part of the list supposedly compiled by 9ilakati.

It is alleged that these were the main reasons which made the pair to assault 9ilakati.

Meanwhile, 'lamini appeared at the Manzini Magistrates &ourt on )riday where he was remanded in custody until $pril 5, 0 .