Nurse in the dock for allegedly arranging hit on her husband

The wife of slain Transnet engineer Nkosi Langa, who was kidnapped from his Pinetown home in September 2020, was back in the dock on Tuesday where she was cross-examined about their relationship and events leading to his disappearance.

Nompumelelo Goncalves, who is a professional nurse, her cousin Nkosinathi Zungu and two others face charges of kidnapping, robbery and murder. Goncalves also faces a charge of defeating the course of justice in connection with the false reporting of his car as stolen.

State witness James Mthimkulu, who was last year sentenced to 20 years for his role in the kidnapping, robbery and murder, claimed Langa was strangled with a cord by himself and Zungu. He claimed Goncalves hired Zungu and the hitmen to carry out the murder because she was the victim of domestic abuse.

However, state prosecutor advocate Krishen Shah refuted Goncalves' claims.

The state alleges that some time before September 29 and 30 in 2020 the assailants abducted Langa. They bound him and forced him into his car and drove off.

The tracker unit was removed and Goncalves reported him missing. She claimed he had gone to meet someone and never returned.

Langa was made to reveal his ATM pin code and his assailants used his bank card to withdraw cash at different places.

When the tracker unit was removed, Goncalves engaged someone to sell the Isuzu bakkie on her behalf and reported the vehicle missing, the state alleged. 

Langa's vehicle was found in October and his body was discovered a month later.

A post-mortem concluded the exact cause of the death could not be ascertained due to the extent of decomposition, but “strangulation could not be ruled out”.

Goncalves said she opened a case against Langa at the Pinetown police station on April 25 2020, alleging she had been slapped so hard she had to seek treatment at the Westville hospital. Langa opened a counter-assault charge.

The case was withdrawn on June 8 2020 after the parties mediated the matter.

Goncalves was testifying before Durban high court acting judge Bonke Dumisa.

In a statement, she claimed she had feared for her life and that of their four-year-old daughter.

The case is continuing.

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