The SAPS Provincial Taxi Team arrested three men for murder at Osizweni, Newcastle. Police were conducting their investigation into the murder of a member of a taxi association in the area. The suspects aged between 39 and 53 were charged for murder and they appeared in Madadeni Magistrates’ Court today, 18 March 2014. They were remanded in custody until 26 March 2014 for bail application.
On 20 January 2014 at about 07:00, Samuel Mazibuko, 60, was driving near Makhosazane Store, B section, Osizweni when an unknown vehicle with an unknown number of occupants shot at him while he was inside his vehicle. Suspects sped off and he sustained gunshot wounds all over his body. He died instantly as a result of his injuries and police recovered shotgun cartridges at the scene. He was the executive member of Sizwe Taxi Association.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni, hailed the arrest of the suspects. “The taxi industry is a multi-billion rand industry and many are driven by greed to eliminate rivals and competitors within the industry. Fierce competition for passengers and lucrative routes continue to build up tension and fuel the violence with innocent commuters getting caught in the cross-fire between rival associations. Over the years, we have successfully arrested and prosecuted perpetrators of taxi-violence and will continue to do so until the industry is stabilized. We are working closely with the KZN Department of Transport and are confident that peace and order will prevail once we have the culprits who are inciting the violence, behind bars,” she said.