The wife of eThekwini municipality metro cop Capt Thomas Ntombela, who was gunned down in front of his uMlazi house in May last year, struck up a romantic relationship with a man claiming to be KwaZulu-Natal politician Siboniso Duma.
Faith Ntombela, now in the dock for her husband’s murder, only found out later that the fake MEC was actually convicted killer Khulani Cele serving time in prison but continued the relationship as he reassured her he would “take care” of her husband.
The Umlazi court administrator together with Cele and school principal Sthembiso Khumalo are charged with the murder of the 50-year-old VIP officer who was gunned down by hitman Mzo Ntombela (no relation), 27, in May last year.
Mzo Ntombela, who was sentenced to 20 years in jail by Durban high court judge Kate Pillay in August 2023, implicated Faith as the mastermind. A video of her instructing the hitman how to carry out the hit also surfaced.
Ntombela's attorney Ashwin Rughbeer told the court during sentencing proceedings on Thursday his client endured years of abuse from her husband and even contemplated suicide.
He said with the high number of single parents in the country there was the possibility of Ntombela’s children squandering monies left for them.
“They will be exposed to negative influences without her presence,” said Rughbeer.
Rughbeer said since the first court sitting, his client had always planned to plead guilty and called on the court to mete out a sentence which has a measure of mercy.
“The court should balance the interest of society together with the interest of the accused's children and the family. My client should be given a sentence which could allow her to salvage what she has of her life. She should still have the vitality,” said Rughbeer.
In Ntombela’s guilty plea she admitted to having contributed to her husband’s demise. She also admitted to having stolen her husband’s firearm and making false statements to the police.
She said on March 22 she was inboxed by someone who called himself MEC Duma, whom she later found out was Cele using the politician's identity.
She said they communicated regarding a tender for nutrition supplements for schools for children living with disabilities.
The pair later exchanged cellphone numbers and communicated on WhatsApp.
Soon after she registered a company called Cngalwa, which she hoped would be a vehicle to bid for the tender as she was under the assumption she was dealing with a high-ranking member of the ANC who would catapult her to wealth and success.
She continued to communicate with Cele and did not find it strange he made time for her despite his busy schedule.
During their virtual exchange, romance blossomed between them despite her telling Cele she was married and that her marriage would become an impediment.
Cele assured her he had plans which will “sort her out”.
She said on April 20, she was directed to a place in KwaMaphumulo, north of Durban, where she met Cele’s relative whom she took shopping.
That’s when she discovered Cele to be a prisoner serving a sentence at Pietermaritzburg’s New Prison.
Cele then asked her to share details about her husband’s weapons and information about their uMlazi home. She later filmed her husband’s weapons and the contents of his safe.
On April 21, Ntombela took her husband’s personal firearm and ammunition from the safe and placed it in their red Suzuki.
Cele then told her to take the car to a garage where she would meet Khumalo and the hitman and Mzo Ntombela.
On April 22, she again travelled to KwaMaphumulo to meet Cele’s relatives.
With the pair now emotionally involved Cele gave Ntombela an address where she could source poison to kill her husband.
Khumalo provided the syringe with the poison and told her to dilute it in any liquid which she should give to her husband. But she got cold feet and panicked and left the poison in their dog's kennel.
She said she and the husband quarrelled about the whereabouts of the Suzuki, which led to her ingesting a handful of tablets and being admitted to hospital.
She was later treated for suicide and depression. A week later, she checked herself out of hospital when Cele gave her fresh instructions about how her husband would be killed on May 3.
She met Mzo, who drove the Suzuki and gave him her husband’s uniform and another gun at the entrance to their home to commit the murder.
Prosecutor Krishen Shah dismissed Rughbeer's suggestions about domestic abuse.
“Clearly this type of dynamic happens almost in every household and in this case the accused's children are well taken care off,” said Shah.
He also countered Rughbeer's claims Ntombela had considered pleading guilty, saying from the onset the state had opposed Ntombela being released on bail.
He said the couple’s children were being looked after by an uncle at their parental home in uMlazi. Shah said the murder had ripped the paternal and maternal families apart,adding this was laid bare by the accused's sister who testified during mitigation of sentence.
“She [the sister] testified how they did not know anything. She described the deceased as a wonderful person. This begs the question why this happened,” said Shah.
He described the murder as callous.
“The deceased was shot with his own firearm. There were false statements by the accused which indicates the level of planning,” said Shah.
Judge Mahendra Chetty expressed concern that the state had handed in a probation report from the social worker on Thursday.
“This has a knock-on effect on sentence. It’s simply not possible to do justice,” said Chetty.
The matter was adjourned until November 29.
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