DURBAN - Idols SA loser Mthokozisi Ndaba allegedly punched and slammed a 21-year-old woman into a wall, bruising her and breaking her tooth, during a night of partying.
Ndaba and his cousin, known only as Qhawe, allegedly had been drinking at a Braamfontein apartment when he assaulted the young woman, Neo Tsele. The woman was arguing with one of her four friends when Ndaba intervened. The two also fought over a bottle of alcohol.
Tsele’s friend took to social media on Saturday as Ndaba had apparently fled and could not be found after the assault. The alleged attack occurred at a time the country observes the campaign for 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence.
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Ndaba posted a picture on his Instagram from OR Tambo International Airport where he came across winning Idol Paxton Fielies.
Repeated attempts this week to contact Ndaba failed.
Tsele told the Sunday Tribune she had been out with a friend before returning to the Braamfontein flat.
“We found Mthokozisi with his cousin having drinks with my other friend, Manoka. Manoka and I later argued and Mthokozisi pushed me against a wall,” she said.
Neo Tsele before the alleged assault (top) and Tsele after the brutal assault (lower).
Ndaba, who lost the Idols SA competition last week, had apparently helped himself to Tsele’s bottle of vodka, which she was saving for her birthday next month.
“I told him it was mine and he must not drink it. That is when he pushed me again and threw me out of the flat,” she said.
Tsele said when she tried to fight back, he started punching her.
“I pushed him back in self-defence and he punched me until I was bleeding. They tried to stop him, but it got worse. He punched me until I broke a tooth.
“Mthokozisi and his cousin Qhawe told me not to call my brother and the police, saying they would replace my tooth,” she said.
Tsele, however, phoned her brother and the police, but by the time they arrived Ndaba was gone.
POLICE
Sergeant Mduduzi Zondo, the police spokesperson at the Hillbrow Police Station in Joburg, said a case of assault had been opened and police were investigating.
DJ Prince Kaybee, who had earlier posted a picture with Ndaba and expressed his desire to work with him, has apologised to his fans.
“A few minutes ago I posted a pic of me and Mthokozisi (Idols). It just got to my attention about his alleged assault case. I don’t condone such actions against women and apologise if I offended anyone,” he said.
In a post on social media, Ndaba indicated he would be flying back to Durban by 5pm on Sunday. He did not address the assault allegations against him. He made headlines when he stormed off the stage when he lost to Paxton and snubbed a press conference.
Pictures of Tsele’s bruised face and broken tooth went viral on social media as her friends posted that Ndaba was a “wanted man”.
“Police searched the flat of his cousin, he was not there. He was probably hiding in other rooms because it’s a big flat. I did not even know he was well known because I did not watch Idols. It was my friends who said they could recognise him from Idols and that was after he had beaten me,” said Tsele.