SHOT COUPLE’S FAMILIES DEVASTATED

MANZINI – Shattered and heartbroken! These are emotions that engulf the families of Dumile Kunene and Sipho Francis Zungu. The pair was killed on Monday evening, allegedly by Malangeni Dlamini, a husband to Kunene.
A member of the Kunene family, who requested not to be named for now as the incident was still fresh, said the family was shattered by the demise of their daughter.

She described the deceased police officer, who was under the Royal Guard, as someone who was responsible and hardworking. The relative said the news was hard for the family to take in as they were still recovering from the sad loss of their father.
“Dumile was killed just about two months after we buried her father. It is catastrophic to her mother, who was still learning to live without her husband,” the relative said.
The relative said it was so heartbreaking and they were concerned about the health of Kunene’s mother after learning that her daughter had passed on. She said the challenge for them had been how they would relay the news as she was someone who had hypertension.

However, the relative said when relaying the news, Kunene’s mother said: “God saw it fit for this to happen.”
She said despite taking the news well, the family was concerned about her wellbeing as this was just hard for everyone. The relative went on to say the deceased was survived by four children.
The youngest of the children is about two years old while the eldest has completed school and is aged around 20. The four children comprise two males and two females.
“The two-year-old child was with the husband.”

Following the murder of their mother, the relative said some of the deceased’s colleagues took the children to her sister, who resided in Manzini. This, she said, was done so that they could be with someone they knew.
“With such a chilling incident, the children needed someone they know and to feel safe under that person’s care.”

She said the family was still planning the logistics of her send-off as it was sudden and very shocking to them. The family member said they had learnt that the deceased had died painfully as some of them had visited the morgue to identify her body.
“We are still reeling from shock as her fingers were severed. It is so sad that she passed on in such a manner,” she said.

 Bruise

From her bruises, the relative suspected that Kunene fell while she fled from her assailant and at some point might have used her hands to shield her face.
The relative said there was a high possibility that she would be laid to rest at her parental home at Malutha where her family was meeting. Malutha is in the western part of the country.
Meanwhile, an aunt to Zungu said they were traumatised by the demise of their next-of-kin. She said since Tuesday, a number of people were visiting their family to mourn his demise.
“People are visiting us to forward their condolences,” she said.

The aunt said the brutal manner in which their relative died was worrisome. She hoped that justice would be served.
The aunt described Zungu as someone who was down to earth and very humble. She said despite that he had spent most of his time of late in Manzini, he helped whenever possible at home.
Zungu hails from Mahlabatsini under KaNgcamphalala Chiefdom in Siphofaneni.
The aunt said the deceased civil servant had four chil

dren and was a responsible father to them.
“What happened really shocked us,” she said.
She said Zungu’s wife was the one who would be mostly affected as she had lost her companion and partner.  Zungu was employed by the Ministry of Agriculture as an Agronomist. He had been in this position for a lengthy period. Following the murder of the pair, Kunene’s husband, who is a police officer, was charged with two counts of murder.
The pair was killed on Monday evening at Madonsa, Extension 6 through the use of a gun allegedly belonging to the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS).

Dlamini, 47, of Nyakeni under Chief Malunge II, was in the first count accused of unlawfully and intentionally killing Zungu by shooting him with a pistol once in the head, which resulted in his death.
In the second count, Dlamini was charged with killing his wife, Kunene, who was also a police officer under the Royal Guard and based in Matsapha. In committing the crime, Dlamini allegedly fired the pistol twice at Kunene.
Dlamini made his first court appearance and confession at the Manzini Magistrates Court on Tuesday before Magistrate Lucia Lukhele.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: