When hitman Mandlenkosi “Mzo” Ntombela pulled the trigger to kill Durban metro police officer Capt Thomas Ntombela in May, a prison inmate was the voice in his ear telling him the murder would make him rich.
“Kuzophela ukuhlupheka [you won’t be poor anymore]… just make sure you do not miss,” Khulani Cele, who is serving life behind bars in Nu West prison outside Pietermaritzburg, allegedly told Ntombela, 27, via cellphone.
In the moments before the killing, the hitman greeted his target — who is no relation — and asked his name. Before squeezing the trigger Ntombela, who was sentenced to 20 years in jail last week, told the officer — who was in a VIP protection unit — that what was about to happen had been ordered by his wife, Nongcebo Faith Ntombela.
Ntombela revealed this during sentencing following his guilty plea in the Durban magistrate’s court last week, where he spilt the beans about the murder.
He said he and Cele — who was sentenced to life in 2011 for killing a councillor in Mandeni local municipality, northern KwaZulu-Natal — were supposed to get R150,000 each from Nongcebo.
Ntombela said Cele had started the ball rolling, putting him in touch with Nongcebo.
Nongcebo, 48, was arrested on Sunday and appeared in the Umlazi magistrate’s court on Tuesday. It is alleged that she was romantically linked to Cele, and would visit him in prison.
Ntombela said he was in constant cellphone contact with Cele in the days leading up to the murder and on the day of the hit, May 3.
On that day Cele called him and asked him to meet Nongcebo in Umlazi.
Ntombela said Cele was on the phone while Nongcebo drove him from the mall where they met to the home she shared with her husband, where the hit was to be carried out. He said Nongcebo had her cellphone on loudspeaker in the car.
Ntombela’s plea explanation says: “They explained that the job was for him to kill her husband [Thomas]. Nongcebo pointed to a house at a distance, giving him a description of the gate, and explained which areas would have poor visibility once it got dark. These would be the spots to hide and where he could shoot Thomas from.”
Ntombela said Nongcebo gave him a bag containing a police uniform and he was told he would be given another firearm so he would have a backup weapon. Nongcebo allegedly also gave him R1,200 for petrol to drive away after the hit.
Ntombela then told Thomas that what he was doing was because of his wife, and he pulled out one firearm and shot the deceased
— Plea explanation
He said he sat waiting in the car. Cele called him again later to say the police captain was going to be sent to the shop and that he must drive closer to the house so he could spot him.
Thomas drove out of the yard to the shop and Ntombela waited for him to return. Cele told Ntombela he should strike when Thomas got out of his car to close the gate.
He did so, greeting Thomas first and asking his name.
“Ntombela then told Thomas that what he was doing was because of his wife, and he pulled out one firearm and shot the deceased once in the head, observing him fall,” the plea explanation says.
Ntombela was arrested on July 21.
The KwaZulu-Natal correctional services department did not respond to questions about how Cele had access to a cellphone in prison.
Nongcebo’s attorney, Ashwin Rughbeer, said his client would not comment on Ntombela’s version of events.
“My client is more than willing to co-operate with the state and the investigators to ensure that this matter is put to rest. For now, we ask that her privacy be respected and will release a statement in the coming weeks,” said Rughbeer.
Capt Simphiwe Mhlongo, spokesperson for the Hawks in KwaZulu-Natal, said Thomas Ntombela’s killing was still being investigated and more arrests were imminent. He said Cele’s role was part of the investigation, and he might also be charged.
A relative of Thomas’s who asked not to be named said he found a phone, containing videos, in the recycling bin in the couple’s house. The videos were narrated by a woman explaining the house’s layout, possible hiding places and other tips. He said he sent these to the police.
Referring to Cele, the relative asked: “How come an inmate has a phone and can stay on a call for so long?”
Nongcebo returns to court on Tuesday for a bail application.
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