Of the nine men accused of murdering South African lesbian Zoliswa Nkonyana, two were cleared of all charges yesterday and were released.
Nkonyana, 19, was stabbed and stoned to death — reportedly because of her sexual orientation — near her home in Khayelitsha in 2006. Two of her friends were also assaulted.
Lubabalo Ntlabathi, Sabelo Yekiso, Anele Gwele, Mbulelo Damba, Sicelo Mase, Luyanda Londzi, Zolile Kobese, Themba Dlephu, and Mfundo Kulani were each charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder, but last month their attorneys argued that the state’s evidence against them was poor and that all charges should be dropped.
On Wednesday, Magistrate Raadiyah Wathen concurred that the state had failed to prove that any of the men had assaulted Nkonyana’s friends, and all attempted murder charges were withdrawn. Gwele and Kobese were also successful in having the murder charges dropped.
According to South Africa’s Times Live, “The case has drawn criticism from all corners of civil society [and] the police have been lambasted for shoddy work.”
Read the full article here.
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