On Monday, 9 October 2023, Zola Martin Mnisi, aged 29, stood before the Kabokweni Magistrate Court, following his voluntary surrender to the Hawks on allegations related to murder and a series of cash-in-transit robbery cases in Mpumalanga.
Zola Martin Mnisi: Why would a cash-in-transit mastermind hand himself over to police?
This marked Mnisi’s initial appearance in court, specifically for the murder of a Fidelity Security Officer during a cash-in-transit robbery at Kabokweni.
The case was adjourned and is scheduled to resume on Thursday, 12 October 2023, at the same court.
Yet, this is just the beginning of Mnisi’s legal journey, as he is also expected to make court appearances for additional cases in White River and Malelane.
The law enforcement’s spotlight turned to Mnisi after the Hawks disseminated his information across media platforms, labelling him as a sought-after suspect.
This development came about as a result of rigorous investigative efforts that established Mnisi’s links to a string of grave criminal activities spanning different regions within a period of five months.
The crimes attributed to Mnisi include:
- The murder of a Fidelity security guard coupled with a cash-in-transit robbery in Kabokweni, which transpired in April 2023.
- Another tragic incident where a G4S security guard was murdered during a cash-in-transit robbery in White River, occurring in July 2023.
- A cash-in-transit robbery in Malelane in August 2023.
Questions remain unanswered about why Mnisi chose to surrender himself to the Hawks.
Alas, the narrative further thickens with the mention of Mpendulo Absima Hassane, aged 31, as a co-accused alongside Mnisi.
Their criminal collaboration was first identified in relation to the cash-in-transit robbery that happened on 11 August 2023, in Malelane.
With Mnisi now in custody, the spotlight shifts to Hassane, whom the Hawks strongly urged to follow Mnisi’s steps and turn himself into the police.