Olorato Mongale murder: After being cleared as a suspect, Fezile Ngubane vows to turn life around
JOHANNESBURG - After being mistakenly being named as a suspect in the murder of Olorato Mongale, Fezile Ngubane has vowed to turn his life around.
Following the killing of Mongale, police released a picture of Ngubane, branding him as a wanted suspect.
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But after handing himself over to police on Friday, Ngubane was cleared of the allegations when investigations showed that his identity was being used by the masterminds.
Mongale's body was found in Johannesburg a few hours after she went missing.
Fezile spends most of his days washing cars and smoking whoonga, a common drug also known as nyoape.
It's not how his parents imagined his life would turn out after he enrolled for a qualification in civil engineering at the Mangosuthu University of Technology many years ago.
Fezile's father, Mandlakhe Ngubane, said the incident was a wake-up call for him not to waste his life.
"He was very smart. He is naturally a smart person. I sent him to a Muslim school in Johannesburg, but he was expelled in Grade 11 because of the drugs he was smoking."
Mandlakhe said that while Fezile finished his matric, he could never shake off the drugs, which eventually destroyed his potential.
The main suspect in Mongale's murder was killed during a shootout with police in KwaZulu-Natal last week, while a second suspect is still on the run.
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Olorato Mongale's mother Basetsana speaks during her funeral on Sunday. Image: Free State Provincial Government/Facebook Police have reported an increase in the number of cases that they are linked to the syndicate responsible for the death of the former Wits University student, Olorato Mongale - three more have been added to the 22 reported last week. Last week, the number of cases being investigated by the police stood at 22 cases with SAPS spokesperson, Brigadier Athlenda Mathe indicating that the number has increased to 25. "We are now standing at 25 cases linked to the syndicate," Mathe said without going into details about the latest developments in the matter. Police said they are closing in on Bongani Mthimkulu, the remaining suspect of an alleged kidnapping syndicate that targeted young women at shopping malls in several provinces. The main suspect, Philangenkosi Makhanya, was killed during a shootout with police at Amanzimtoti in KwaZulu-Natal last week. 'That is the only syndicate that we had identified that was going around the country targeting woman in various malls in various provinces. We are counting Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu- Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga as well as North West,' said Mathe. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Meanwhile, as the manhunt for Mthimkhulu continues, the spokesperson for the Mongale family, Dr Criselda Kananda and the entire Mongale family confirmed in a statement that the family has withdrawn its support for Fezile Ngubane - one of the recently cleared suspects. Police arrested Ngubane but later said he was targeted by the syndicate and was an innocent victim of identity fraud. In a statement issued on Tuesday, Kananda announced her withdrawal from supporting Ngubane's addiction rehabilitation journey after having supported the campaign aimed at helping him overcome his drug addiction. 'I would like to take a moment to express my appreciation for the outpouring of support regarding the call to help Fezile Ngubane with his rehabilitation. Our initial intention was to assist in placing Fezile at a free rehabilitation centre, as we believe that simply throwing money at someone struggling with addiction is not a sustainable solution. "However, with the introduction of monetary donations into this situation, I have decided to withdraw my engagement in Fezile's case. I believe it is best to those who have taken a different approach to carry on from here," she said.
