One of the two people arrested in connection with the murders of two Soweto boys made a confession to police detailing how she lured the children to a park, smothered them with a piece of cloth, and stabbed them.
The confession, according to the investigating officer who is close to the matter, took place on April 26.
However, the National Prosecuting Authority has denied the confession claim.
According to a police source close to the case, 50-year-old suspect Nqobile Ndlovu told officers a day after the arrest that she committed the crimes alone.
“She [Ndlovu] said she left her partner in the house and went out to check on the children who were playing,” said the source.
“She said just after 5pm, she asked the children to accompany her to a nearby park. She said it was a bit dark at the park because there was loadshedding in the area on the day [April 19] she killed the children.”
According to the source, the suspect left one of the boys at the far end of the park while taking the other one to an open area of the same park.
“She covered him with a piece of cloth so that he could not scream, and she strangled him until he lost consciousness. She then proceeded to stab him.”
The suspect then went back to where she had left the other boy and asked him to walk with her to a street next to a school in White City, Soweto.
“She said she also smothered him with a cloth and stabbed him,” according to the source.
Ndlovu and her partner Mthunzi Zulu, 39, were arrested on April 25 following a forensic investigation conducted at the boys’ homes.
First court appearance
The couple made its first appearance in the Protea magistrate’s court on April 28.
They face two counts of murder related to the brutal killings of five-year-old Nqobizitha Zulu and six-year-old Tshiamo Rabanye.
They are also charged with kidnapping, perjury, and defeating the ends of justice. Ndlovu is Tshiamo’s grandmother.
During their most recent appearance in court on September 15, they abandoned their formal bail application. The matter was postponed to October 30 for further investigations.
According to a source, Ndlovu threw away the murder weapon, a knife, next to the school where Tshiamo’s lifeless body was discovered.
The knife and the missing body parts were never found.
“She said she took the knife from her home when she left [to look out for the children]. She said she placed the knife on her body covered in a cloth,” said the source, adding that Ndlovu could not disclose the motive for the killings.
“She said she does not know why she killed them, and does not know if she was possessed by Satan or something evil.”
After killing the boys, according to the source, Ndlovu rushed back to her home where she told her partner not to say anything to anyone about the murders.
“The partner told us [that] he last saw the children playing outside and that he did not know that Ndlovu had taken them to the park.”
Confession? What confession?
Contacted regarding the alleged confession and the case, Gauteng police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said: “Kindly note that once a case goes to court, we no longer communicate on it, the NPA [National Prosecuting Authority] does.”
NPA spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwana denied that there had been a confession, stating that an investigation is not complete.
“There are DNA results which are still outstanding. The evidence on how they [accused] are linked [to the murders] will be presented in court,” said Mjonondwana.
“We cannot confirm if more accused or charges will be added until investigations are concluded.”
Ndlovu and Zulu are represented by the legal aid.
Contacted regarding the alleged confession, Legal Aid SA’s Gauteng provincial executive, advocate Wilna Lambley, said it was unethical for a legal practitioner to disclose the details of any consultation they have with clients.
“As the case is currently sub judice, Legal Aid SA can only confirm that we are representing the accused,” said Lambley.
“We provide legal assistance to accused persons to protect their constitutional right to a fair trial and defend their right to be treated as innocent until proven guilty through a fair hearing in a court.”
The accused remain in custody until their next court appearance on October 30.
