How wives ‘shopped’ for hitman

Explosive evidence of how two wives shopped around for a hitman to kill one of their husbands was given in the Bhisho high court on Tuesday.
Busiswa Nabi, 43, of Mdantsane turned against her co-accused in a conspiracy to murder trial by turning state witness.
Nabi told acting judge Philip Zilwa that first accused Nomqondiso Tembu, 50, was the one who introduced her to a Cape Town hitman whom Tembu had boasted had killed her own husband.
Nabi said Tembu was unhappy with another man hired by Nabi because he was allegedly taking too long to do the job and finish off Nabi’s husband.
Nabi said Tembu was so keen on bringing in Western Cape-based Simphiwe Wili, 47, that she offered to fund the hit from pension and life insurance payouts she was receiving thanks to her murdered husband Vusumzi.
Tembu and Wili were left in the dock and Nabi walked free last week after entering into a plea agreement with the state which saw her four-year sentence being wholly suspended.
Vusumzi Tembu, a general worker at the Mdantsane magistrate's court, was killed outside Sisa Dukashe Stadium on Valentine's Day in 2017.
Nomqondiso was later arrested by the Hawks in connection with the murder. She also stands accused of conspiracy to murder Nabi's husband.
“Nomqondiso and I came to a conclusion that Jeffery ‘Mzala’ Mthethwa was only milking my money and not prepared at all to do the job because a month went by since I had hired him to kill my husband but with no results,” said Nabi.
She said every time she would ask their hitman about the progress of the killing, Mthethwa would say: “Tonight we will kill him.”
Nabi said after she and Tembu called Mthethwa to Tembu's NU2 home, they terminated the contract. “He was not happy and asked how was he expected to pay back the money because he had used it all.”
Nabi said she told Mthethwa to forget about the money and the hit job.
She said it was then that Tembu said she could lend her some money to hire the Cape Town would-be assassin once life insurance and pension payouts from her murdered husband had been deposited in her bank account.
Nabi told the court that she was reluctant to carry out the the mission to have her husband killed until the hitman revealed that the husband had actually hired him to kill her.
“He showed me an identity photo of me claiming that he got it from my husband who had ordered him to kill me. That is when I thought if I don't kill him first, he will kill me,” said Nabi.
Nabi said she met Mthethwa again at a fast food outlet in Oxford Street in East London and gave him R3,000 to do the job.
A nervous Mthethwa was reluctant to take the money immediately and looked around the restaurant to see if there were any CCTV cameras, said Nabi.
Another meeting which took place between Nabi and Mthethwa was arranged near Highway Shopping centre for Nabi to show Mthethwa where her husband lived.
Mthethwa complained that his home in Emerald Sky complex in Amalinda, posed problems for a solo job and he introduced a second man.
This came with a demand for more money and the financially strapped Nabi managed to put together another R3,000 and gave it to Mthethwa.
Nabi said that didn't encourage Mthethwa to do the job, and he continued asking for more meetings where he would demand more money but with no action done.
Nabi was being led in her evidence by state prosecutor Deolin Willemse.
Defence attorney Michael Maseti, who represents Tembu and Wili starts cross examination on Wednesday.
malibongwed@dispatch.co.za..

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