Elvis Nyathi's Alleged Killers Back In Court
The seven South African men arrested in connection with the murder of Zimbabwean national Mbodazwe Banajo “Elvis” Nyathi last month will today appear at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court for their bail application hearing.
Nyathi was assaulted and burnt to death by Operation Dudula-inspired vigilantes in Diepsloot, Johannesburg on 6 April.
The vigilantes were moving from door to door demanding identity documents from residents and allegedly taking bribes from people who could not produce the documents.
Nyathi (43), a father of four children in Zimbabwe, failed to produce his passport and his wife, Nomsa Tshuma (38) could not raise the bribe demanded by the criminals.
They severely assaulted Nyathi in front of his wife before taking him to the streets where they set him on fire.
The suspects, who are all South African, have been charged with murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping, attempted murder, assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and extortion.
According to IOL, the seven men have been charged with Schedule VI offences.
This means that they have to convince the magistrate that exceptional circumstances exist that warrant their release on bail.
Initially, 14 suspects were arrested but the other seven were later released due to a lack of evidence.
