The greed of former policewoman Nomia Rosemary Ndlovu netted her close to R1.4m over a number of years, but five family members and her boyfriend paid with their lives to satisfy Ndlovu’s need for money.
Her mother Maria Mushwana, her sister and five nieces and nephews narrowly escaped death after the alleged hitmen tipped off authorities in 2018.
Her killing spree, which began in 2012, was brought to a halt in March 2018 when a man she had hired to kill her sister Joyce and Joyce’s five children turned to the police.
Ndlovu had in her own words told the “hitmen” that she wanted the job done as she was desperate for cash and on the brink of losing her BMW to a loan shark she owed money to.
Since her arrest, after pointing out her sister’s house to the hitmen in Bushbuckridge, Ndlovu has been in jail.
Ndlovu’s conviction has not provided answers to the deceased’s family members who are wondering who were the people who carried out the murders.
Though the wheels of justice seemed to turn slowly, three years after her arrest Ndlovu’s day of reckoning has come.
On Friday, the Johannesburg high court found her guilty of the murders of her cousin Witness Madala Homu, her sister Audrey Somisa Ndlovu, her boyfriend Yingwani Maurice Mabasa, her niece Zanele Motha and her nephews Mayeni Mashaba and Brilliant Mashego. These murders took place between 2012 and 2018.
It is still unclear who carried out the murders of the victims.
On Friday, Ndlovu was also found guilty of the attempted murder of her mother, of defeating the ends of justice and of fraud against Clientele, 1Life, Old Mutual and Assupol insurance companies.
What was frightening about the deaths was the severity of injuries visited upon the victims.
Mabasa, for instance, was stabbed more than 80 times and Motha was found to have suffered fractured ribs and a damaged liver.
After numerous failed applications to be released on bail, her trial began this year and was finalised with relative speed.
Praise should be given to the investigating officer, Sgt Keshi Benneth Mabunda, who started working on the case in 2015 and whose diligence ensured Ndlovu’s conviction.
However, Ndlovu’s conviction has not provided answers to the deceased’s family members who are wondering who the people were who carried out the murders.
Ndlovu’s sentencing will begin next month and it is hoped the sentence will ensure Ndlovu spends a major part of her life behind bars.
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