5 MDC activists cleared of murder in SA

5 MDC activists cleared of murder in SA

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By Magugu Nyathi

A SOUTH African magistrate on Wednesday dismissed the case against five Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) activists arrested in June last year on allegations of burning and killing a compatriot.

Magistrate Naomi Manaka, presiding at the Westgate Court, said the witnesses' statements contradicted evidence of the post mortem.

She said: “It is evident that we are dealing with a wrong body as both witnesses claim that the deceased had external injuries but the postmortem I have with me states that he had no external injuries except for the burns and I can not charge the group for a wrong body. I therefore find them not guilty."

The five include the former Organising Secretary of the MDC Hillbrow wing Philmon Moyo, popularly known as Njemnyama, Philemon Ncube, Thembelani Ndebele, Sidanisile Ngwenya and Memory Moyo.

The five were accused of killing and Lungile Moyo's body, just days after the abduction of two other MDC activists, Liberty Ncube and Musa Mhlanga.

The two were caught-up in infighting between the (MDC) Zimbabwe Action Support Group (ZASG) and members of the mainstream MDC South Africa branch which has been going on for the past two years.

The missing pair has not been found to date.

Speaking to New Zimbabwe.com, the soft-spoken Philemon Moyo denied having a hand in the murder of Lungile.

He said: "There was no way we could have murdered Lungile, he was leading us to the hideout of the criminals when we met the police who instead took him away. That was the last time we saw him alive."

"We can only suspect that the same people who abducted Liberty and Musa followed up with Lungile and killed him, after he was suspected of working with us in our investigations."
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