Durban — It has been four years since a video - that went viral showing the torture of a matric pupil accused of stealing alcohol from a tavern - caused an uproar in the oThongathi community.
Six people accused of killing Andile “Bobo” Mbuthu, 16, are to face judgment in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court.
Andile was a Grade 12 pupil at Nkosibomvu Secondary School.
There were seven people charged with Mbuthu’s murder and kidnapping. One accused, Mlungisi Thabethe, 26, who was the owner of Magagula’s Lounge from which Andile had allegedly stolen alcohol, was gunned down in his VW Polo in 2021.
The other men charged alongside Thabethe, who were said to be the mastermind behind the murder, were Andile Nhleko, 27, Mncedisi Mzobe, 27, Siyanda Msweli, 26, Lindani Ndlovu, 26, Malusi Mthembu, 27 and a accused who was a minor aged 16 at the time.
The accused were arrested in July 2020 following Andile’s assault and disappearance in April of that year from Hambanathi tavern, co-owned by Thabethe.
Andile had been accused of stealing alcohol. His remains were found in a bag filled with bricks dumped in a Tongaat river. DNA samples matched Mbuthu’s DNA.
In the video of Mbuthu that sparked anger, he is lying in an empty room with blood on the floor. In the video, the person filming walks in shouting Andile’s name, telling him to get up and clean the place. The person pokes him with a stick, telling him to turn over.
A powerless Andile says he is in pain as he turns to the camera revealing his battered face. The person then pushes him over with his foot and Andile rolls onto his back. He struggles to sit up and the person again tells him to get up and clean the room.
As the person walks out of the room, the footage shows broken pieces of wood, a bucket, and a rope thrown on the floor. Andile calls out. Andile addressed the person taking the video as “schoolmate” and the person swears at him.
Following their arrests there was an outcry from the community. The tavern where the incident allegedly happened was razed to the ground, allegedly by angry Hambanathi residents.
Five accused were denied bail while the minor abandoned his bail application.
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Daily News