Durban — A Durban High Court judge has sentenced a hit man to three life sentences on Tuesday. One of the sentences was for the murder of ANC ward councillor Sibusiso David Maphumulo.
Maphumulo was killed in October 2018 while sitting in his vehicle in Umlazi.
Nkosingiphile Gumede, 39, was found guilty of murder in six cases, including attempted murder, possession of an unlawful firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition and robbery. Judge M Reddy gave him 15 years’ imprisonment in each of these cases.
Judge Reddy sentenced Gumede to life imprisonment for killing Lungelo Hadebe in November 2018 at Bridge City Mall in KwaMashu after robbing him of R20000. Gumede received another life sentence for killing business consultant Sanele Samuel Sanga in May 2019.
Gumede faced 11 charges but was found guilty on seven. The State motivated the court to give Gumede a harsher sentence labelling him a ruthless hit man who killed people for money.
The case was being handled by two State advocates, Elvis Gcweka and Lawrence Gcaba.
Gcweka told the court that the evidence proved that Gumede had no conflicts with his victims, which made him a hit man.
Gcweka said that in 2018 the president of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, had declared KwaZulu-Natal as the province with the most political killings and formed a political unit to deal with these cases. “The unit works day and night but these crimes keep on increasing,” said Gcweka.
Gumede’s lawyer, advocate Sicelo Zungu, asked the court to be lenient in his client’s sentencing as he did not have an ideal upbringing like other children. Zungu told the court that Gumede’s parents died when he was a baby and he was raised by his grandparents. Gumede had to move from one place to another and that all of that can have a bad impact on a child’s mental health, he said. He further revealed that Gumede failed his matric.
“He is a respectable community member and family man and has six children. He also has a chronic disease that he is currently taking medication for. He was diagnosed in 2017.”
Zungu said Gumede was a breadwinner at home and that his six children were dependent on him. Gumede was a member of the KwaMaphumulo taxi operation and had a taxi. He earned R20 000 a month.
Gcweka argued that Gumede had told a social worker that he had a fulfilling childhood and was raised by his grandparents in a principled home with a background of Christianity. Gcweka reminded the court that Gumede used an unlicensed 9mm Girsan Model Yavuz 15 semi-automatic pistol with the serial numbers erased without being a holder of the licence.
“None of his six children lived with Gumede, he only supported them financially,” said Gcweka.
Judge Reddy said Gumede had committed serious violent crimes and that his sentencing should send a strong message to other hit men.
“The killing of politicians is prevalent and it threatens our hard-earned democracy. This sentence should send a strong message to anyone who thinks of committing such a crime,” said Judge Reddy.
A woman who was victimised during the killing of Lungelo Hadebe said the robbery incident brought so much pain to her family because her sister’s child died during the incident and she survived after being shot.
“This brought separation and tension in the family because there was this question of how did she survive while others died. My sister has never expressed how she felt about the whole thing but our relationship is sour. However, I have found closure with the sentencing,” she said.
A family member of Sanga’s, who wished to remain anonymous, said the harsh sentencing showed that the justice system works.
Daily News