WeeklySA_AdminDEADLY MISSION:Grim details of how Major-General Thekiso Mogoerane was strangled and later murder suspects went on to be cleansed by traditional healer
By Monk Nkomo
RETIRED Major-General of the SAPS Crime Intelligence Thekiso Aaron Mogoerane, 60, whose body was found at the back seat of his car in January 17 2018, was throttled to death in a well-orchestrated murder which allegedly involved his wife, son and a traditional healer.
Mogoerane’s wife, Cordelia, is charged – among other things – with murder and conspiracy to murder in relation to the killing of her husband in 2017. His son, Thabiso, is also charged. The pair and other accused have made several court appearances since the incident.
Mogoerane, who was a former member of ANC’s Mkhonto we Sizwe and served time on the Robben Island, was a member of the National Crime Intelligence before he retired in May 2016.
She is alleged to have approached in August 2017 her traditional healer, Eunice Ntombizodwa Dlamini, to assist her in having her husband killed. And Dlamini, in turn, is alleged to have recruited Musa Mayisela (who have since died), and introduced him to Mogoerane.
The State’s version is that a drugged and unconscious was strangled on a sofa in the lounge of the family home in Birchleigh, Kempton Park. Police suspected the motive could have been money as he had already received a partial payout from an anticipated large pension at the time.
The two women were among six people who appeared in the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg this week in connection with Mogoerane’s killing. They face charges of murder, conspiracy to murder and an alternative count of incitement to commit murder. The accused are out on bail.
The accused are Mzweshinga Zondo (48) of Sotho Hostel, Vosloorus, Thulani Nxumalo (33) of 1527 Twala Rd, Sotho Section, Vosloorus, Sanele Micheal Mphuthi (36) of 20 Secheke Street, Vosloorus, Thabiso Mogoerane (28) of 111 Strydom Street, Birchleigh, Kempton Park, Dlamini ( 69) of Emandleni Settlement, 565 Actonville, Benoni and Mogoerane (55) of 111 Strydom Street, Birchleigh in Kempton Park.
The State alleges that, in August 2017, after Mogoerane had approached her traditional healer, Mayisela then sought the services of Zondo to help him murder the retired police officer as he considered that this was not ‘’a one man’s job’’. Zondo allegedly roped in Mogoerane’s son, Thabiso.
After a meeting between Zondo and Mrs Mogoerane in January 2018, another suspect, Bongiwe Lukhele (who has since passed away) and who was Zondo’s girlfriend, was recruited and her car was used to drive to the police officer’s home in Birchleigh, according to the State. Zondo, Lukhele and Mphuthi drove to Mogoerane’s house but, upon arrival, they found the police officer awake. They abandoned their mission and left.
The State alleges that another plan was hatched when Zondo recruited Nxumalo and Mphuthi to help him with the murder plot. The three travelled with Lukhele to Birchleigh. On arrival at the house, Lukhele remained in the car while the three suspects entered the house, where they found Cordelia and her son.
Thekiso Mogoerane was asleep when the three arrived. His wife allegedly pointed him out to the three suspects who allegedly strangled him to death.
The three, together with the deceased police officer’s wife and son, then placed his body in the back seat of his car, drove it to the side of the road at P91 in Kempton Park and left him and the car there.
After that, the three suspects – Zondo, Nxumalo and Mphuthi – allegedly drove in Lukhele’s car to the home of the traditional healer, Dlamini, in Wattville, where they performed a cleansing ritual.
The case has been postponed to later this month.
• Mogoerane was brother of Thelle Simon Mogoerane who – together with two other ANC guerillas Jerry Mosololi and Marcus Motaung – were hanged at the Pretoria Central Prison on June 9 1983, after being convicted on a charge of high treason.
