A Buffalo City Metro EFF councillor may find herself in hot water after being arrested in connection with a kidnapping in Dimbaza on June 10.
EFF proportional representative councillor Kholeka Mpupha, 37, appeared in the Dimbaza magistrate’s court on Friday and was released on R2,000 bail.
The charges against her include kidnapping and defeating the ends of justice.
Mpupha, a councillor in Tyutyu Central, Bhisho, appeared in court with her alleged accomplice, Cwenga Ludidi, 34.
They are accused of kidnapping a hardware store businessman in Dimbaza, outside Qonce.
Ludidi remains in custody and is set to appear in court again on June 19 for a formal bail application, the provincial Hawks confirmed on Monday. The councillor is also due to return to court on the same day.
Mpupha confirmed her arrest and court appearance but denied any involvement in the kidnapping.
“Yes, I appeared in court charged with interfering with the law or something like that, but I know nothing about this case, I was not involved.”
She declined to comment further.
She said she was co-operating with police investigations.
Hawks provincial spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Avele Fumba said the two were arrested after a breakthrough by the East London-based serious organised crime investigation’s kidnapping task team.
Ludidi was arrested on the same day as the alleged kidnapping, while Mpupha was arrested a day later, spending a night in jail before appearing in court.
Fumba said: “According to [police] reports, a 42-year-old businessman was allegedly forcefully abducted from his hardware store by an unknown male who seemingly shoved him into the victim’s vehicle before speeding off.
“The kidnapping task team of the Hawks, in collaboration with the East London Flying Squad and the dog unit, acted swiftly on vital information received from alert community members.
“The team followed a vehicle of interest and in a well-co-ordinated tactical action, the team intercepted the vehicle and arrested the male suspect on the spot.”
Further investigations “pointed to the involvement of a local councillor, who is alleged to have played a key and critical role in aiding the suspect’s attempted escape”.
While the Hawks confirmed the businessman had been reunited with his family, Fumba said they had not ruled out the possibility of further arrests.
Ludidi also faces charges of attempted murder and possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.
On Monday, EFF provincial secretary Simthembile Madikizela said while he had been made aware of Mpupha’s arrest “through social media screengrabs sent to me”, the party was yet to be formally told of Mpupha’s arrest and subsequent court appearance.
“We are not aware, we got this on social media, but we will establish the facts about this and act accordingly, because we have certain principles that we subscribe to.
“We will have to establish what exactly happened there, and we take it from there, but we will not ignore this serious issue.”
Madikizela said the EFF would try to establish if Mpupha “collaborated willingly in such a situation”.
“If we find that she collaborated willingly in this, the organisation will have to take certain action.
“But we are going to establish the facts with the councillor and the police and take it from there.”
Madikizela said while the EFF did not have an automatic step-aside policy similar to that of the ANC — where a member appearing in court for any transgressions must resign until the matter has been resolved in court — the party’s provincial structure could recommend to national leaders what action might be taken against any member implicated in crime.
The provincial structure was yet to be informed of Mpupha’s arrest, saying the councillor and the sub-regional structure she reported to had the prerogative to inform the province.
But Mpupha confirmed that she had not informed her organisation about her arrest, saying “this has nothing to do with the EFF. There is nothing implicating the EFF in all of this, hence I did not feel the need to report this matter to the organisation”.
On Monday, Mpupha’s council leader, Mziyanda Hlekiso, said he would get more details from the councillor before formally informing the provincial EFF leadership.
BCM council speaker Humphrey Maxegwana did not respond to questions by the time of publication.
Hawks provincial head Major-General Obed Ngwenya said: “The arrests demonstrate the power of co-ordinated policing and the critical role communities play in tackling serious crime.”
Daily Dispatch
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.