Missing journalist and partner: How a suspect initially became police's 'trusted' key witness
Community radio journalist Aserie Sibusiso Ndlovu and his partner Zodwa Precious Mdhluli have been missing since February 18.
Image: Screengrab/X
National commissioner of the SA Police Service, General Fannie Masemola, on Wednesday revealed that one of the suspects arrested for the disappearance of Pretoria-based radio journalist Aserie Sibusiso Ndlovu and his partner Zodwa Precious Mdhluli, was initially a key witness who seemed to be helping police investigators.
IOL reported on Monday that four people have been arrested, linked to the disappearance of the couple in February. The couple was last seen on February 18, 2025, leaving their home in Mpumalanga in a white Volkswagen Citi Golf.
On Wednesday, Masemola said a fifth suspect has been arrested and the accused men are set to appear before the KwaMhlanga Magistrate's Court. One of the arrested suspects is a minor, aged 17.
The accused have been charged with multiple crimes including kidnapping, theft, hijacking, and possession of drugs.
"Only recently, it is when police got some of the clues, and when they did their further investigation that is when they came to realise that some of the things are amiss. One of the arrested persons is somebody that was driving an e-hailing vehicle for the victims. He was our key witness all along. He was somebody who was assisting us all along but now it has turned out that he is a suspect himself,"
"That is part of what took the investigation so long. Somebody that we trusted, that is assisting us, only later to realise that we should not be looking further but closer to where we are. That is also what led to the breakthrough and assisted in the investigation."
He said vehicle parts of Ndlovu's white Volkswagen Polo were found, already fixed on two other cars, after the witness was implicated as a suspect.
IOL reported on Tuesday that police have established that one of the arrested suspects in the mysterious disappearance of Ndlovu and his partner Mdhluli, was working for Mdhluli as the driver of her cab.
Masemola said the cab driver was the person who was a "key witness" who was telling police investigators where he last saw the couple.
Police later established that the driver had deliberately mislead them, and they arrested and charged him.
"He told us the same lie, that they were not missing. He told us the last time that he was with them ... but the investigation proved a little bit different from what he was saying," said Masemola.
Pretoria-based journalist Aserie Sibusiso Ndlovu was reported missing on February 18, 2025 together with his partner, Zodwa Mdhuli.
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