WATCH | One of the accused in Thembisa school murders is a pastor and DJ

One of the two people accused of murdering Inxiweni Primary School’s principal and admin assistant is a pastor and DJ who was arrested hours after burying his brother, his family told Sowetan.

Tuki Benjamin “DJ Stunkie” Maditsi, 35, was taken into custody on Thursday night. A few hours earlier he had been DJing at his late brother’s after-tears ceremony.

His arrest came a day after that of his cousin and financial clerk at the Thembisa school, Mokgadi Hope Shongwe.

The cousins have been charged with the murders of principal Nozibele Thapu, 58, and admin clerk Nobantu Njomboni, 55, who were shot at the school last Tuesday.

Their uncle, Bongani Nkosi, said he had been with Maditsi earlier that night at the after-tears gathering.

“The next morning when I came out of my house I was asked whether I knew about Tuki’s involvement in the crimes,” Nkosi said.

I did not believe it then and I don’t believe it now that these two did it. With Tuki, it’s worse because we spend a significant amount of time together.

—  Bongani Nkosi, uncle of the accused

“I did not believe it then and I don’t believe it now that these two did it. With Tuki, it’s worse because we spend a significant amount of time together. I attend his Apostolic church, where he is a pastor, and I go to the establishment where he DJs. Tuki loves people. He has always been a sweet, God-fearing boy who loves music.”

Nkosi said he went to court on Monday hoping to speak to his nephew. “Mokgadi is a child, at least that’s how I see her. How she would be involved in such corruption is shocking. They have decent jobs, so why would they do this? Since the news broke, people are pointing at me in public, confirming I am their uncle,” he said.

A community policing forum member in eMangweni Section in Thembisa, Vusimuzi Vilakazi, said he had also attended the funeral and after-tears event. “It came as a shock to us because we were at his brother’s funeral. On Friday morning social media posts suggested he was a suspect in the Inxiweni murders,” he said.

At the container where Maditsi worked as a resident soul DJ, staff members said they were shocked by the allegations.

Simon Kunene, right-hand man to the container’s owner, said: “Tuki has always been full of ideas and a cornerstone in the establishment as a resident DJ. He also assisted in other capacities. We have known him as someone kind and adored by many people who come here. The reports have hurt the business as it has been associated with the crime. We are also shocked and are waiting for the truth.”

Kunene, however, said they had previously experienced troubling incidents involving Maditsi. “We had a burglary at the establishment and sound equipment was stolen. On investigation we learned Tuki was the mastermind,” he said.

Kunene also detailed issues involving stokvel money.

“As of February this year, we had a stokvel we were running with others, including him. We would give him between R500 and R1,500 to deposit every week. In August, through our treasurer, we discovered he had not been depositing the money given to him.

“He would deposit half. When we calculated the shortfall, it was more than R50,000. We raised the issue and agreed it would be deducted from his weekly salary.”

Kunene said the recent allegations left them asking questions. “Is it fame? Did he have money problems? We trusted him with the establishment’s money to buy what we needed, and he would bring back change. We are wondering what went wrong.”

Maditsi and Shongwe are expected to appear in court again on December 1 after a brief court appearance on Monday when their case was postponed.

Residents who spoke to Sowetan after the murders said Thapu had knocked off for the day on Tuesday but returned to confront Shongwe about suspected unauthorised transactions when two gunmen entered the school and opened fire.

Sowetan