KZN hitman gets 22 years

2009-10-21 19:07

Johannesburg - A man hired to shoot dead a Newcastle taxi boss who was allegedly fleecing rivals was jailed for 22 years by the North KwaZulu-Natal High Court on Wednesday.

Musawenkosi Sibisi, 26, pleaded guilty to the murder of taxi boss Stanley Nkosi in March this year.

Sibisi said he and another man were paid R20 000 to kill Nkosi and free those hiring them of Nkosi's alleged illegal demands.

Sibisi's alleged partner in crime, Ronald Hlatshwayo, had pleaded not guilty and he had been remanded, said police spokesperson Captain Thulani Zwane. 

The accused said a relative had urged him to take on the killing assignment and he was tempted to do so because he did not have a job in Newcastle and was unable to support his family.

He and the other hit man were provided with an R5 rifle and a pistol and Nkosi was shot dead at the Long Distance Taxi Rank.

Prosecutor André Ludick said Sibisi had admitted his guilt as soon as he was arrested.

Judge Anton van Zyl said the taxi industry was mired in lawlessness although based on the facts in the records of the case there was no proof that Nkosi had actually fleeced rivals.

Van Zyl found there were substantial and compelling circumstances to not impose on Sibisi the prescribed life sentence for a planned murder.

Zwane said police are still searching for two suspects.

- SAPA