Rifle cartridges, muthi and matchsticks at the mouth of a petrol tank.

These are some of the items police found in an abandoned Mercedes Benz vehicle linked to the alleged killers of musician AKA.

The vehicle was allegedly driven by the suspects in a separate incident where they shot dead a man, injured a woman and hit a pedestrian as they fled from the scene.

The incident happened on March 6 2023, less than a month after Kiernen “AKA” Forbes and his friend Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane were gunned down in Durban. 

An affidavit from the National Prosecuting Authority stated that the wife of a taxi boss in Umlazi, Durban, had picked up a man who assisted her to get taxi operating permits in Morningside, and they were en route to Berea to drop off the man when they were ambushed by gunmen in a Mercedes Benz. 

The woman tried  to hide behind her car’s steering wheel while screaming for help. She then realised that her passenger had been hit by a bullet. She then drove off while the assailant continued to shoot at her vehicle.

The woman reached a garage on Umbilo Road, where the garage manager and police assisted her. Her passenger died inside the car.

“Whilst fleeing from the scene of the shooting, the assailants’ vehicle collided with a pedestrian, causing injuries to the pedestrian. The vehicle continued to drive away  at high speed. The pedestrian managed to take down the registration number of the white Mercedes Benz,” read the affidavit.

The vehicle was later abandoned in Cato Crest informal settlement, and investigations showed that there had been an attempt to burn it.

The vehicle was covered with Coca-Cola and two burnt matchsticks were found at the mouth of the petrol tank. Two spent rifle cartridge cases were found in the backseat while one spent rifle cartridge case was found in the front seat. There were also three bullet holes on the driver’s side window. The car had false registration plates and investigations into the ownership of the car showed that it had been stolen in January 2023. 

“One of the assailants also purchased airtime from a tuck shop situated a few metres from where the vehicle was abandoned. Investigations revealed that Siphamandla Ngcobo was identified as the person who recharged his phone with the airtime purchased from the tuck shop,” read the document. 

Ngcobo was arrested on March 26 last year for robbery with aggravated circumstances in respect of the stolen Mercedes Benz. 

Using cellphone records and car tracking system, police linked Siyabonga Ndimande as the kingpin in the murder of AKA, while Lindelani Ndimande provided instructions on how the murder was to be executed.

The two brothers are also suspects in the murders of AKA and Tibz.