KwaZulu-Natal - An Umzimkhulu man accused of massacring his relatives – allegedly because he believed they were involved in witchcraft – has pleaded not guilty and says he was at work at the time of the mass murder.
Msimbithi Chiya appeared in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Tuesday charged with six counts of murder and eight of attempted murder.
The State alleges that Chiya, 35, and two relatives, Malibongwe Chiya and Sifiso Sibanda, planned to kill several elderly members of their family, believing that they were practising witchcraft and bewitching them. It is alleged that on the night of June 7, 2006, they stormed the women’s homes and shot them and other relatives as they slept.
Ntulikazi Chiya, 78, Prisca Chiya, 79, Florah Chiya, 71, Angelina Sibandu, 86, Nomfundlela Ngubane, 42, and three-year-old Kwande Chiya, were killed.
Eight others, including five children, were hit by the hail of bullets and seriously injured.
Chiya has pleaded not guilty, claiming he has an alibi.
His defence advocate, Philemon Ndlela, submitted a letter from Jack Maserow furniture manufacturers, Chiya’s employer, stating that he was at work in Johannesburg on that day.
The State alleges that Chiya had a colleague clock in with his work card on the day in question, to give the impression that he was at work.
Testifying for the State on Tuesday was Vusi Dlamini, a convicted criminal who was in prison with Chiya following his arrest. Dlamini told the court that Chiya had admitted to him that he had “killed grandmothers in his family”.
“When I asked him what they had done to deserve being killed, he (Chiya) told me that they had been practising witchcraft,” Dlamini said.
The trial continues. - Daily News