Don't use service pistols in anger – Durban mayor after metro cop arrested for murder
7 January 2020
eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda has appealed to Metro Police to not use their firearms in anger after a constable was arrested for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Zinhle Muthwa.
"As the municipality, we strongly condemn gender-based violence and it is sad that Ms Muthwa was allegedly killed by someone who was meant to uphold the law. We therefore call on Durban Metro Police members not to use service pistols to deal with anger issues," Kaunda said on Tuesday.
Constable Ndumiso Khumalo, 30, who is attached to the City's multi-operational response unit, is in custody after he appeared in the Umbumbulu Magistrate's Court for Muthwa's murder on Monday.
He faces charges of murder and defeating the ends of justice and will be back in the dock on January 13 to apply for bail.
Kaunda also called on authorities to get justice for Muthwa.
"We also call upon the police to conduct a thorough investigation to get to the bottom of this matter. Institutions that are responsible for dispensing justice must also send a clear message that crimes of this nature are not acceptable in our society."
Muthwa's bruised body was found in Umbumbulu on New Year's Day with a gunshot wound to the head.
Her body was recovered at Ndaya Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, News24 previously reported. The 29-year-old also had multiple bruises.
Her parents positively identified her body on Thursday.
Media reports indicated that she had initially gone missing after someone in a white car picked her up in New Germany.
Umbumbulu detectives led by its station commander followed up information regarding Khumalo's involvement in the murder and arrested him in the area. They recovered a firearm that was believed to be the murder weapon.
Muthwa's initial disappearance sparked an outcry on social media amid ongoing fears of gender-based violence which reached boiling point during the #AmINext movement in mid-2019.
