Cops swoop on 4 in fiery village feud
Three women and a man have been arrested for attempted murder and arson in Sicambeni village in the troubled Kwakhanyayo administrative area near Flagstaff.
A murder case, which the director of public prosecution had earlier declined to prosecute because of a lack of evidence, has been reopened.
This is the same area where 28 homesteads were torched earlier this month, forcing scores of villagers to flee their homes amid a feud between Sicambeni and Zitha villagers. All the homesteads that were burnt were in Sicambeni.
The four suspects are expected to appear at the Mthontsasa magistrate’s court near Flagstaff on Wednesday for a formal bail application.
They appeared briefly last week on Thursday.
The Dispatch reported at the time that terrified people were sleeping in the bush after violence broke out in the village over disputes about demarcation, traditional leadership and economic gains resulting from some tenders for building the Mtentu mega-bridge.
Sixteen homesteads were burnt in February, bringing the number of homes burnt in Sicambeni and Zitha villages to 44.
Subsequently, Eastern Cape police commissioner Lieutenant-General Liziwe Ntshinga assembled a nine-member “higher-calibre” task team to track down those responsible.
On Monday, provincial police spokesperson Captain Khaya Tonjeni said the team conducted an operation in Zitha village.
“During the operation three women aged between 54 and 64 were arrested and charged with arson. One male, 35, was arrested for attempted murder following a shooting incident that happened on March 23.“All these attacks follow a fight between villagers from Zitha and Ngquza, who attacked Sicambeni and Mgwedlweni villagers while they were coming from attending a traditional event.“During the attack, one male was murdered by the Zitha and Ngquza group,” said Tonjeni.He said the team had reopened a case of murder that happened on March 11, which had been withdrawn by the public prosecutor for lack of evidence.“The investigation is at an advanced stage and more arrests are imminent,” he said.Welcoming the arrests, Ntshinga said: “I was at Kwakhanyayo and I saw the pain on the women’s faces, the devastation of private property and suffering children who had to sleep on the mountain instead of going to school.”The arrests came after a high-powered government delegation that included four MECs – Oscar Mabuyane, Fikile Xasa, Phumza Dyantyi and Weziwe Tikana – and Ntshinga visited the troubled area earlier this month. Those in hiding in the mountains have been encouraged to return home as a peace accord is being implemented.About 200 homeless Sicambeni villagers are being accommodated at the local church hall...
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