Everson Luhanga

We wrap up the seven-part series which highlights the lives of the zama zamas. We conclude with a dance of hope at an abandoned mine.

Abafana Base Mawosi maskandi group has been the source that brings a few smiles to the faces of Braamfischerville and other places warning young people to concentrate on their studies and not to become zama zamas.

Group leader Nkosizathini Hlongwane said he has seen too many young people leaving school to become zama zamas where they get killed or arrested. 

“When I say a zama zama, I don’t only mean the miners. I also warn those who do illegal activities to find money,” he said.

“For those who hustle illegally, from those who commit petty crimes, to fraudsters and greedy politicians. I say to them they must stop because their ways of finding the money will take them to early graves or to cold police cells.”

Hlongwane said in his music, he tells young people to concentrate on studying, and find a decent job where they make money legally.

“We have seen many people going into the mine shaft and coming out in body bags,” he said. 

“Others have not returned to their homes after becoming illegal miners. It is a terrible life for their families and close friends. It is very dangerous to be a zama zama,” he warned.

Hlongwane said he organises a music show at the abandoned mine shaft at least once a month where most of the people attending are zama zamas and their parents. 

“I’m happy that the message in my songs gives people hope for a future where they don’t live in fear of their lives,” he said.

Hlongwane said he has been a singer since he was a young boy. He has travelled to France, England and the USA among other overseas countries. 

“I have a talent for composing and singing,” he said.

“Many people in the community of Dobsonville love me and I have been getting calls from other communities to perform in their areas to warn young people as well.”

Hlongwane said they are hoping to get a sponsor for a car so they can travel anywhere in the country and be lifesavers through their music.

It is a group of maskandi singers who entertain, warn and educate community members surrounded by abandoned mines.

Everson Luhanga

Lerato Nkoana said her zama zama boyfriend took care of them very well. But then lockdown struck.

“The streets were quiet. Soldiers and police were everywhere. It was very scary especially for a zama zama to leave home with his equipment,” she said.

The couple live in the Zamimpilo squatter camp in the Longdale Industrial area near Riverlea, Johannesburg.

She said her family only survived through food parcels given to them by Good Samaritans. 

“With lockdown, going into the tunnels was now more dangerous than ever,” she said.

“Some were arrested. Some never came back. We don’t know what happened to them.”

Muhao Tshabalala said he had been working for a construction company for more than ten years but then lockdown came and the company closed down. 

“I had no other means of finding money. I became a zama zama in October,” he said.

Themba Nyambo, who works as a zama zama at Faraday in Johannesburg central said he lost his job at a restaurant in Maboneng when lockdown was implemented.

“I lived a decent life with my family but that all ended with the hard lockdown.

“The only way to find the money was to follow the guys into the shafts,” he said.

A resident of Braamfischerville extension nine in Soweto says perhaps the government should legalise the industry.

“The increasing number of zama zamas is a problem. The guys are killing each other,” she said.

Phenduka machines for separating the dust from the gold are found all over communities in Johannesburg, Soweto, and Ekurhuleni.

Joel Mabaso from Braamfischerville said every day they see new faces as young men see the mines as an alternative to a life of street crime.

“There are no jobs. People are desperate. Many young people are becoming zama zamas. They say they are running away from committing crimes that would land them in jail.”

Everson Luhanga

Part three of Life of Zama Zama. A seven-part series, originally published in May 2021, about those who have died as illegal miners, the horror stories of death underground and the survivors and families.

Lloyd Siwela lives in constant fear after he survived a shooting in which he could easily have lost his life. 

Lloyd and his friend were in Lloyd’s car when the shots were fired. Lloyd survived – his friend did not. And now he lives with the knowledge that his life may easily have ended that day.

At the time, the two men were trying to get away from a police officer who had been victimising them.

Lloyd had been tortured and kidnapped by the officer, known to all zama zamas in the Roodepoort and Florida areas as Magolide.

Magolide allegedly pepper-sprayed Lloyd, tied him up with cable ties, and left him in the bushes for the night. He was rescued by his friends the following morning.

Speaking to Scrolla.Africa, Lloyd said there are many examples of how Magolide had targeted him and his friends. 

He said in May 2020, Magolide pursued him in a car chase. The officer blocked his way and Lloyd hit and scratched the police’s state van on the left side. Three days later, the kidnapping took place. In September his friend was shot dead in his car by an unknown group while they were trying to get away from Magolide.

Scrolla.Africa spoke to several others who allege that the officer also targeted them.

According to zama zama James Khumalo, Magolide is a well-known member of the local Basotho gang.

“The Basotho gang members go to zama zamas and collect money. Magolide goes to the shafts almost every hour to collect money from the gang leaders to take his share,” he said.

Zama zama, Thulani Moyo said Magolide also collects money himself.

“If you don’t have the money, he assaults and pepper sprays you and takes your bags,” said Thulani. 

The corrupt police officer is now facing charges of kidnapping and a case of malicious damage to state property was opened against him after he failed to report the incident in which his state vehicle was damaged. 

He allegedly tried to paint over the scratch with a brush.

By Everson Luhanga

Part 9

Sharing Marie biscuits with her brother, Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu is always calm under pressure. 

I have watched her in court many times, and she never loses her cool. She was dressed beautifully when she appeared in Tembisa Magistrate’s Court last time.

In a warm woolly jersey, a flowery dress and shiny black high-heels, Rosemary walked in. There were three armed policemen and two policewomen by her side. Six police cars were outside.

It was a big day – her case was being moved to the High Court.

This meant joining up the 13 charges of murder and conspiracy to murder. The cops have also added new charges, this time of allegedly plotting to kill colleagues investigating her kill-for-cash family murders.

Rosemary was in a happy mood, and she had a chance to speak to her brother, Director Ndlovu. As we reported in Part 7, he has supported her throughout. 

The transfer of the case to the Johannesburg High Court took less than 10 minutes. Until now, Rosemary has appeared many times in the Tembisa Magistrate’s Court, to try and get bail. 

While she was waiting for the investigating officer to finish the paperwork, Rosemary sat in a marked police Quantum taxi eating toasted bread and cheese. 

She kept on telling her brother Director, standing nearby, that she would be out and back with the family in October.

Director added: “You won‘t be sentenced. You will be back.”

Rosemary had some Marie biscuits, which she had brought from the prison. She could not reach the Director to give him a biscuit, so I passed the sealed packet to him, while she sat under guard in the police minibus.

Soon the investigating officer arrived with the updated file and handed it over to the police officers guarding her. They then set off to Pretoria‘s Kgosi Mampuru II prison.

There she is under special 24-hour guard after she was found with two smartphones in her cell.

The trial starts in the Johannesburg High Court on 20 September. As we have reported, the verdict is not a sure thing. 

Rosemary is accused of arranging killings that she got other people to carry out, which could be hard to prove. The state also has to prove the link between the deaths and the insurance policies – how Rosemary arranged them, and how she organised collecting the cash.

Killsurance will be back soon with a sequel.

Everson Luhanga

From the original Killsurance series, published in October 2020.

Part 7 of 9

“She always looked after us.”

The brother of murder-accused Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu is standing by her and wants her out of jail. 

Rosemary’s brother, Director Ndlovu, is supporting his sister even though many of his relatives have allegedly been on her hit list for funeral cash.

He says his sister should be freed because she is the breadwinner for her remaining family members.

Rosemary was arrested in March 2018. She’s accused of murdering five people:

• Witness Madaka Homu, a cousin, in April 2012 
• Audrey Somisa Ndlovu, a sister, in June 2013
• Yingwani Maurice Mabasa, her boyfriend, in October 2015
• Brilliant Mashego, a nephew, in January 2016
• Zanele Motha, a niece, in June 2016

Rosemary allegedly cashed out R1.38 million in funeral-policy claims after ordering their deaths. She also allegedly plotted to kill at least eight other people, in addition to two policemen.

When asked if Rosemary poses a danger to him and the family, Director told Scrolla.Africa in an interview that his sister is “loving and caring”.

Director says the alleged killer being portrayed in court is not the Rosemary he knows. “She has not shown us any signs of violence at home. She always looked after everyone in the family.”

“I know about the allegations. But they are just allegations and they need to be tested and proven by a court of law,” he said.

Director says other family members are standing by her and want her out of custody. Several of them have been in court when Rosemary unsuccessfully tried to get bail. The court has refused her bail several times. 

As Rosemary’s trial has progressed, some of her family members have stopped turning up in court.

Meanwhile, according to the police statement opposing her bail, Rosemary also targeted another sister, Nomsanto.

Rosemary allegedly offered hitmen a R3,000 deposit and R15,000 to finish the “job”, driving with the hitmen to her sister’s house so they could identify her. After giving the assassins an extra R800 petrol money, “she kept on contacting them and requesting them to kill Nomsanto, but never gave them the money. Later on, the hitmen were informed that the applicant’s sister was killed.

Image source: Twitter

Everson Luhanga

Remembering Maurice Mabasa 1972 – 2015

From the original Killsurance series, published in October 2020.

Part 8 of 9

Maurice Mabasa, who died in 2015 after being hacked to death near Olifantsfontein, was known for his love of life and his generosity. 

The father of six children supported all 13 of his siblings, and his mother. He had a good job as a driver at a foreign embassy in Pretoria, so was able to look after his family. He was a passionate fan of Kaizer Chiefs.

At the time of his death he was organising a new house for his mother in Malamulele, Limpopo. “He was heading the plans. But after his death, we have been devastated,” said one of his brothers, Justice. “He loved life. He had friends all over. From Malamulele in Limpopo to Tembisa in Joburg, he was a person who was well received.”

A police investigation linked Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu, Maurice’s girlfriend, to his death. It’s one of at least five murders she is accused of organising since 2012 to cash in on funeral-insurance policies. And in this case, with Maurice, prosecutors allege she hired hitmen to kill him – and then took the insurance payout.

Maurice’s younger brother Ronald remembers going to the mortuary to identify Maurice’s body, and seeing Rosemary there. She was sobbing. But Ronald suspects it was all an act. “When we went to identify my brother’s body at Germiston government mortuary, Rosemary was crying hysterically and helplessly,” Ronald said.

Justice says his mother was the most affected by Maurice‘s murder. She has found it very hard to accept that her son is dead. 

More tragedy was soon to follow.

Rosemary and Maurice lived together for three years, at his home in Tembisa. He had one daughter with Rosemary – Makhanani Mabasa, who died in 2017, at the age of two. 

The picture below is of Maurice and Makhanani.

Read: Part 9

By Everson Luhanga

Part 4 of 9

Undercover cops pretended to be hitmen to trap Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu – after she hired assassins to kill her sister’s family for insurance cash.

This is one of 13 charges she faces of either killing or trying to kill family members for insurance.

And this trap is what stopped her alleged killing spree.

• Rosemary said she wanted the assassins to burn the family’s house while they slept in it, to make it look like an accident. 
• One of the real assassins she allegedly hired to kill her sister Joyce’s family was shocked that Rosemary ordered them to murder four children and a baby. 
• It was all too much for the hired killers. So after Rosemary gave them their job instructions, they tipped off the cops.
• The police – from the Gauteng anti-corruption and crime intelligence units – then worked with the hired killers to trap Rosemary. 
• Using a secret device, the cops recorded Rosemary talking about her plans to kill her family members for insurance money.
• They are with two of the assassins. The hitmen have arranged to travel with Rosemary to Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga. She wants to show them exactly where the family lives, so they can burn down the right house. 
• On 7 March 2018 at 3 am, undercover cops met to plan the “sting”.
• Five police officers meet at a shopping mall in Ekurhuleni to plan the day ahead.
• The police mount a secret dashboard camera in the car Rosemary will be travelling in, with her hired assassins. The car will also have one undercover cop, posing as another hitman.

According to evidence filed in court:

• The cops dash to the taxi rank. They arrest a shocked Rosemary as she is about to head off.
• When the two cars of police following behind arrive in Bushbuckridge, the hitmen – and the undercover policeman with them – have already been with Rosemary to her sister’s house. 
• Rosemary has gone to the taxi rank to travel back to her hospital bed in Johannesburg, to try and keep up her alibi. She has a day pass from the hospital and needs to be back that evening. 

Life Carstenhof Hospital:

• Rosemary sits in one car, a Honda Civic, with the two hitmen – and one undercover cop. Unknown to her, they are followed – at a distance – by two cars with other police investigators from the Gauteng Provincial Organised Crime Unit. 
• She has checked into the hospital to give herself an alibi. She plans to go with the hitmen to point out her sister’s house, and then get back to hospital again by the time the killings take place.
• On the 450km trip to Bushbuckridge, Rosemary begins discussing her plans to kill her sister and her children – all while being secretly recorded. 

• The hitmen and undercover cop pick up Rosemary at 7am at the

Life Carstenhof Hospital. 

• Rosemary wants the kids killed too to make sure there are no witnesses, according to evidence given in court later.
• She tells the hitmen that after the pills make Joyce and her family sleepy, they should then break into the house, and stuff socks in her sleeping relatives’ mouths.
• They stop at a petrol station in Middelburg, where she asks an attendant to fill a two-litre bottle with fuel for the hitmen to use to burn down her sister Joyce’s house.
• Then the hitmen should set the house on fire, with her sister’s children and infant inside.
• She says the insurance companies will pay double if there’s an “unnatural death”.
• All on tape, she tells the hitmen that she will give her sister sleeping tablets and ask her to drink them to prevent flu. She will also tell her to give the pills to her children.
• She tells them she needs the money “to pay debts”.

Rosemary’s plan:

At Bushbuckridge:

Read: Part 5

By Everson Luhanga

Looking back at the original Killsurance series, published in October 2020.

Part 1 of 9

• Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu was in the police service for 14 years. Now she is facing 13 charges of either killing family members herself, or hiring hitmen to do it for her.
• She is also accused of plotting the murder of senior police colleagues investigating her while in prison.
• According to the police, her kill-for-cash strategy bagged her at least R1.38 million.
• After being jailed in Johannesburg Prison since 2018, Sergeant Ndlovu has been transferred to Tshwane’s main prison, Kgosi Mampuru II, under a four-car police escort.

While awaiting trial there, she joins Oscar Pistorius and other notorious convicted criminals.

Until now, Ndlovu has appeared several times in the Tembisa Court, where she has applied for bail – and failed each time.

Her case was moved to the High Court after prosecutors added more charges, including trying to plan the murder of her previous commanding officer and the investigating officer looking into the many cases against her. She resigned from the police after being arrested.

She has yet to testify, and all the allegations by the police mentioned in this series remain just allegations until the court has ruled. Ndlovu was heard telling one of her relatives outside court last month: “There is no evidence. I will be back.”

Many of Ndlovu’s remaining family members are supporting her, hoping she is found innocent and released. They dismiss the charges and say she is a loving person who helps her family with money. Her brother, Director Ndlovu, told us: “I know about the allegations. But they are just allegations and they need to be tested and proven by a court of law.”

And some of her former colleagues at Tembisa Rabasotho police station have told us that she was a respected, professional officer. On the other hand, one of the investigating officers almost broke down in court testifying about her, saying he had seen “the gates of hell.”

Read: Part 2

By Everson Luhanga

Looking back at the original Killsurance series, published in October 2020.

Part 2 of 9

While Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu is in the dock for murdering family members for funeral-policy cash, insurance companies are lining up to hit her with fraud charges as well.

Police sources say she could have taken out policies for up to 28 close relatives.

Rosemary has been charged with five counts of murder and eight of attempted murder or conspiracy to commit murder – where she hired hitmen to do the job for her.

Court documents say Rosemary bagged R1.38 million rand from allegedly fraudulent payouts.

The charge sheet names her sister, mother and cousins as some of those allegedly targeted for insurance cash.

BUT it looks as if there could have been many more family members at risk of early death.

The cops have met with insurance companies who paid out, and that’s when they all realised there could be as many as 28 policies. Several of these insurance companies are preparing to lay criminal charges.

The police would not comment yet on the progress of these fraud charges, but the High Court papers list 104 witnesses, and some are from insurance companies.

When the case hits the High Court in September, the verdict is not a sure thing. Rosemary is accused of arranging killings that she got other people to carry out. The state also has to prove the link between the deaths and the insurance policies.

The state says that with some of the deaths the case is circumstantial and based on Rosemary’s methods – “to take out various insurance policies to cover some of her relatives as well as her life partner, and then to pay and arrange hitmen to kill the said individuals, or to kill them herself for financial gain”.

While Gauteng police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Lungelo Dlamini confirmed ongoing investigations into murder, consipiracy to commit murder and fraud, he would not comment on the progress of the fraud charges.

Read: Part 3

By Everson Luhanga

Part 3 of 9

Colonel Nthipe Boloka is the reason Sergeant Rosemary Ndlovu has been brought to justice to face trial.

After a 34-year career in the police force, the tall, soft spoken cop sees this case as one of his major victories.

When the net closed in on Sergeant Ndlovu, Boloka was commander at Tembisa South police station, where she worked under his command.

In an interview with Scrolla.Africa in his office, Boloka said he first started to get suspicious of Rosemary in December 2016, when about 20 people rushed into the charge office.

The crowd said they had loaned Rosemary money and were demanding repayment. (To get an idea of her money problems, we spoke to one mashonisa who Rosemary owed R56,000, and then paid her back with money from another mashonisa!)

”It shocked me,” Boloka said. “It was the first time for me to see such a thing happen, especially at the police station.”

But at the time Boloka just filed away the information in the back of his mind, and went about his business running the station.

Fast forward to 2018.

One of the hitmen Rosemary allegedly hired to kill her sister’s family was also a police informer.

This informer went to Boloka and told him the whole story – that Rosemary was planning to murder her own family.

“The informant said Rosemary had first asked him to kill her mother. Then she had asked him to kill her sister and nephews and nieces in Mpumalanga. The hitman felt sorry for Rosemary’s family and so he didn’t carry out her requests.”

Colonel Boloka passed on the information from the informant to the provincial crime-intelligence unit early last year. And that’s when the plan to trap Rosemary was born. Boloka worked closely with Investigating Officer Keshi Mabunda, who you will meet again later in this series.

She was finally arrested on 7 March 2018 and is facing charges of murdering five people and conspiring or attempting to kill at least eight others.

Colonel Boloka started his career in 1987 in Soweto. He has seen a lot of action and done many sensitive investigations.

But he has very strong feelings for this case.

”If I hadn’t acted immediately on the received information from the informer, Rosemary was unstoppable and she was going to wipe out her family,” said Boloka. “The dangerous part was she was a police officer who knew how the law works and she was very clever whenever she was doing her killings.”

”As a police officer, every day you wake up and wish to make a difference in the community you serve,” he said.

Read: Part 4