Police drop charges against man held over Jabulile Ntimba's murder as two women appear in court
Two women face premeditated murder and obstruction of justice charges, while police say the killing looks like a crime of passion and are still probing whether it links to the deaths of at least nine women around the metro.
Charges against a man held over the death of Jabulile Ntimba have been dropped, while two women accused in the case face premeditated murder and obstruction of justice charges and are due back in court on 1 October.
According to eNCA (YouTube), Ntimba’s body was found dumped in the Verulam township in eThekwini last week. The broadcaster reported that three people were taken in for questioning as persons of interest, and that the third person did not appear before the magistrate’s court after the investigating team and prosecutors decided the questioning did not support charges. The team handling the case is prosecutor-guided, eNCA reported.
Two of the three were charged, and the state is expected to have finalised its investigations by the time the two women return to the Booysens Magistrate’s Court on 1 October.
Police say Ntimba’s death has the hallmarks of a relationship-related murder rather than a random attack. Investigators have not ruled out a link between the case and the deaths of at least nine women around the metro, and a team of analysts is working to establish which cases may be connected.
“We are still connecting the knots. We are still trying to see the cases that are linked together and we are not discounting the possibility,” an investigator said during the briefing carried by eNCA. In Ntimba’s case, the indication is of a murder that stemmed from a relationship.
The deaths of at least nine women around the metro have raised fears in affected communities that a serial killer may be responsible. Investigators have not said the cases are connected, and the question of whether they are remains open.
Source: eNCA (YouTube), Male suspect in Jabulile Ntimba’s murder released
