Bail hearing postponed for man accused of orchestrating ANC veteran's murder
Mzamo Mlaba allegedly paid R130,000 to have his cousin, former KZN MPL Zibuse Mlaba, killed.
Image: Nomonde Zondi
The bail application for a 63-year-old man accused of murdering his cousin, Zibuse Mlaba, a former KwaZulu-Natal Member of the Legislature, was postponed earlier this week due to the illness of a State prosecutor.
Duncan Mzamo Mlaba, currently imprisoned alongside the hitmen he allegedly hired, stands accused of orchestrating the murder of his cousin, Zibuse. Mlaba reportedly paid R130,000 to the hitmen. Zibuse was fatally shot on October 21, 2021, at the Wareing Shopping Centre in Cato Ridge.
Additionally, Zibuse, an ANC veteran, previously served as the party's provincial deputy chairperson and was a chief of the KwaXimba area in Camperdown.
After learning of prosecutor Advocate Nokulunga Ngcobo's illness, Mzamo instructed his lawyers to request a different prosecutor to continue with his bail application. However, his lawyer, Advocate Sibusiso Xulu, informed the court that he had explained to his client that this was not how the process worked.
Slain ANC veteran Zibuse Mlaba who was killed in October 2021. His cousin is alleged to have orchestrated his hit and paid R130,000.
Image: Supplied
Xulu stated that Ngcobo had previously requested an earlier postponement for a full court date. Ngcobo had asked for an adjournment at lunchtime to attend a meeting at the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) offices in Durban, which was granted.
Xulu requested additional court dates, stating: “We want to set more dates. I do not think that the dates we have reserved would be enough.”
However, the court noted that the problem might lie with him and Ngcobo, whose diaries are full.
“Other dates are affected because we have another matter in Mlazi,” Xulu explained.
Mzamo was arrested in April 2025 by the National Political Killings Task Team, which had been investigating Zibuse's murder since 2024. His arrest followed Fortune Dlamini's guilty plea in April of the same year.
Dlamini told the Camperdown Regional Court that Mzamo was the mastermind behind Zibuse's murder, and that he purchased all the unrecovered firearms used in the hit for R10,000 each. Dlamini has since been sentenced to 18 years' imprisonment.
Fortune Dlamini has been sentenced to 18 years' imprisonment for the murder of KZN former ANC deputy chairperson and MPL Zibuse Mlaba.
Image: Nomonde Zondi
Mzamo initially abandoned his bail application after his arrest, and his case was transferred to the Camperdown Regional Court, where he joined co-accused Mthobisi Dubazana and Nhlanhla Hlongwa.
In a recent development, Hlongwa informed the Camperdown Magistrate's Court that he had fired his legal aid lawyer, N Shongwe, and would be represented by Dubazana’s lawyer, N Mdlalose, a private lawyer.
Consequently, Hlongwa and Dubazana now share legal representation and are scheduled to appear in court in October.
Mzamo is also expected to proceed with his bail application in Camperdown in early October.
In a separate matter, Mzamo faces charges for the murder of Mncedisi Gwala, his alleged hitman, sent to kill Zibuse. He is currently seeking bail in Mlazi for Gwala's murder. Xulu is also representing him in this matter.
The NPA denied Mzamo's request to consolidate the Zibuse and Gwala cases due to jurisdictional issues.
nomonde.zondi@inl.co.za