Mpumalanga chief's widow gunned down just two days after his burial

The widow of Mpumalanga chief and suspected rhino poaching kingpin Clyde Mnisi has been shot dead, just days after his burial.

The incident happened at about 1.10am on Tuesday at the couple's home in Mkhuhlu, Bushbuckridge.

Brig Selvy Mohlala, Mpumalanga police spokesperson, said Charlene Felicity Mathews and two men were shot.

“Police were called to a shooting incident at the residence of the late chief. On arrival they found the lifeless body of the woman with multiple gunshot wounds to the head.

“Two males identified as family members also sustained gunshot wounds and were taken to hospital.

“The female victim was unfortunately certified dead by paramedics who attended the scene.”

Mohlala said a preliminary investigation revealed that an armed suspect or suspects gained access to the house and shot at the three victims before fleeing.

“Police found some cartridges on the scene.”

A team of investigators has been assembled to probe the matter.

The motive is unknown and no arrests have been made.

Mnisi, 37, was laid to rest on Sunday, a week after he was killed in a hail of bullets on the road leading to the Kruger Mpumalanga International (KMI) airport, outside White River.

Mnisi was chief of the Mnisi tribal authority in Bushbuckridge, which has 11 villages under its authority. He became chief last October.

Mohlala said Mnisi and his driver were travelling in a Toyota Avanza when they had a flat tyre and were ambushed by gunmen while waiting for assistance, just after 11pm. 

Last month, a report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime for Enact, stated that Mnisi, together with other people, were charged with a variety of crimes, including theft, conspiracy to commit a crime, illegal buying and selling of rhino horns, corruption, money laundering and racketeering.

They were scheduled to appear in the high court in Mpumalanga this month, where their case was set to go to trial.  

Prosecutors allege Mnisi was one of the “kingpins”, with other top cops and former top cops in the province, who were part of a “huge trafficking network of poached rhino horn” from the Kruger National Park and reserves in the greater Kruger area.

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