Limpopo police have arrested the hitman believed to have pulled the trigger in the killing of 26-year-old schoolteacher Ms Ndinainwi Mabuke, who was shot dead just before she was due to testify against controversial Sibasa pastor, Prophet Innocent Muritho, in a rape case.
The man, identified as 29-year-old Ndivhuwo Makumbane (also known as Mapanere) from Tshisahulu, was apprehended at his hideout in Vyeboom last Thursday, 29 January, after being on the run from police for months.
Makumbane’s arrest is a sequel to an incident that occurred in the early hours of Saturday, 11 October last year, when Mabuke was shot dead in cold blood.
At the time of her death, Mabuke was a key witness in a rape case against Prophet Muritho. She was scheduled to testify against him in the Cape Town Regional Court on 17 October, just six days after she was killed. She had reportedly refused to withdraw the charges despite being pressured to do so. He also faces a charge of rape involving a 14-year-old.
Mabuke was shot while boarding a taxi after attending an all-night prayer service at the House of Cana Prophetic Ministry, a church led by Prophet Rolindela Tshitangano, who is a close associate of Muritho. A 55-year-old taxi driver and a 69-year-old woman were also wounded in the attack, which occurred at Thengwe Matshetshete. The hitman appeared from the dark.
The death of Mabuke raised suspicions that it was a planned hit intended to stop her from testifying in the Cape Town rape case.
After weeks of intensive investigations, police made their first breakthrough when they arrested the first suspect, Andani Madzhie (27), who is apparently somehow related to Prophet Muritho. He was charged with murder and has appeared in court several times, having been denied bail.
Limpopo police spokesperson Col Malesela Ledwaba confirmed the arrest of the second suspect. “After the Thengwe incident, police opened a case of murder and two counts of attempted murder. A massive manhunt of the suspect was activated by the Vhembe District Task Team and Thohoyandou police. The search for the suspect paid off when the suspect was ultimately arrested at his hideout in Vyeboom village in Vuwani,” he said.
Ledwaba added that, upon further investigations, Makumbane was also positively linked to two more cases of robbery with a firearm committed last year February in the Vuwani area, as well as the theft of a motor vehicle in Thohoyandou.
Makumbane appeared in the Mutale Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 2 February. His case was postponed to 6 February for further investigations. Allegations are that he has confessed to pulling the trigger and that he also mentioned his handler.