Amnesty Hearings — Richards Bay — 1998-04-14

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: As I have already explained that Mr Welcome Mtimkhulu was one of the people who were on the hit list because he was rubbing shoulders with the ANC and there were rumours and suspicions.
	The local leadership had a way of gathering information, which way I do not know and therefore I don't want to commit myself as to how they gathered the information, but certainly there was a way of gathering information and there were also things like BSI which we knew that they had files which they used to follow up ANC leaders.  I would not want to concentrate on that, because it doesn't involve me.
	What information was available at the disposal of the local IFP leadership, was that Mr Mtimkhulu had now become dangerous because he was now rubbing shoulders with people like Khumalo, discussing sensitive dockets as already explained.
	We are now in danger so that what covert operations we were involved in, could now be exposed.  People, and even our leaders run the risk of being arrested and we were at war because of that, because we wanted to protect the organisation so that it doesn't end up in trouble, and we did not want to lose our fighting members, it would not be a good idea that these people be arrested.
	That is the reason why Mr Mtimkhulu had to be killed.  I also remember that on the day when he was to be killed, we took Bebebeyela's car, Bebebeyela being a Mayor, it was a Ford Meteor, white and small.  Victor Buthelezi who was his body guard, drove the car for us.
	Victor was in the car, myself, Romeo Mbambo and Joyful Mthetwa, Zweli Dhlamini was also in the car.  There is also another member who was present at the time of the attack, and that is Pios Ndlovu.  He was a Police at the eSikhawini station, also trained at Caprivi.
	On that day, he was ... (tape ends) ... and we proceeded, but I can also say that during the day I tried to establish as to how he got to work, that was Mr Mtimkhulu and I learnt that he was going to report for work the following day, at ten, the day prior to his attack.
	I engaged in reconnaissance and also learnt that he was no longer residing at his home, he was now taking occupation at one of the houses that were flats at the upper H2.  On following this up, I saw a green Skyline parked on the driveway.  
	By so doing, I confirmed that he was indeed residing in that area.  I started looking for an appropriate spot from which we could shoot him, and when we approached H1 together with the guys whose names I have mentioned, I still remember, we entered via H1 and we proceed until we were parked near a house wherein a certain Mr Makwanasi, he was also an ANC member, used to reside, we parked in front of this house.  The house is in an area that is a little steep and from that area, one would be able to walk or drive across to the other section.
	We parked at the H1 section, not where we shot him, so that Victor Buthelezi remained behind the steering wheel.  We left the car there and walked on foot to the other side.
	Mr Mtimkhulu was supposed to drive passed place with a T-junction at which place he would be forced to slow down because he was supposed to turn, proceed straight to the bus stop.
	His car approached and I must also mention that we laid there early before ten in the morning - evening, and waited until we saw his car reversing and driving towards our direction.  And we laid down over the road, so that we could be able to aim and shoot.  I still remember very well that two of these people lay behind me as a back up so that in case one of us is injured, they should be able to rescue him and flee with him, and as the car was slowing down, trying to turn to the left, we started opening fire.
	We opened fire directing the shots to his car.  We were not sure who the occupants of the car were, we were not even sure as to whether Mr Mtimkhulu was in the car or not.  But we had this belief that it must be Mtimkhulu because on looking at the turn that we were looking at, it corresponded and we concluded that it must be him on his way to work.
	We then shot at the car and it jerked.  We thought the driver must be engaging gears and we concluded he must be hit, we must have hit him.  We thought the car would stop, but it engaged in another gear and fled at a high speed.  We concluded that we must have failed.  There was a gun, a Scorpion which is powerful and P.S. who is small in body structure, we thought that as he was firing, he got empowered by the strong gun, and all the bullets missed the target.
	The gun jerked up and resulting in him missing the target because of his small body structure.  After that, we left the scene, got into the car and we fled.  I went back to the Police station where I waited for any sign because when we left, we concluded that perhaps they would go to the Police station to report the incident, but nothing was reported and I could not get any information.  I too was not in the position to make enquiries, because I did not want to be exposed.
	Thereafter it transpired that they went to report at Empangeni Police station where they were told that they could not take up the case, because that was not their jurisdiction.  They were referred back to eSikhawini and we hoped that the incident would be reported, so that a docket could be opened, but it never occurred.
	Later I learnt that Mr Mtimkhulu was not even in the same car that we shot at.  It transpired that there were women in the car, and according to information that we gathered, nobody died, but some people were injured.
	I reported this incident to Captain Langeni, that we tried to assassinate Mr Mtimkhulu but we failed, and we would go for a second attempt, but we did not do the second attempt.
	We were not arrested for the case, we were not prosecuted therefore.

MR WILLS: Mr Mkhize, whose car did you use when this operation was conducted?

BRIAN QUNA MKHIZE: We used Mr Bebebeyela's car.  He was the Mayor of eSikhawini at the time, it is a white Ford Meteor.

MR WILLS: Later on that evening, you conducted another attack at Ntokozweni bus stop.  It is recorded in your affidavit in paragraph 49, page 99 of the record.  Can you relate again to the members of the Committee and members of the public, the circumstances surrounding that attack?