Ben Gumbi was murdered outside a restaurant in Rustenburg last month.
Rapula Mancai
- The business partner of a North West businessman who was killed outside a Rustenburg CBD restaurant has welcomed the arrest made in the case.
- The business partner says they have pinned their hopes on authorities.
- Ben Gumbi recorded videos weeks before he was killed, which suggested that he had been threatened.
The business partner of a North West businessman who was gunned down outside a Rustenburg CBD restaurant last month has welcomed the news of an arrest in the case.
Two gunmen shot Ben Gumbi dead in broad daylight last month in full view of patrons and staff, shortly after he arrived at the restaurant. Video footage of the shooting went viral on social media.
On Friday, police said they made a breakthrough with the arrest of a man, identified as Sibongiseni Ngubane, in Germiston.
He was arrested when he appeared in court on an unrelated charge of armed robbery, North West police spokesperson Brigadier Sabata Mokgwabone said at the time.
Ngubane appeared in the Rustenburg Magistrate’s Court for Gumbi’s murder on Thursday and is expected to return on Tuesday.
Speaking on behalf of his family, Gumbi’s business partner, Jacob Ngakane, told News24 on Friday that they were watching the developments closely, but that they knew best to leave authorities to do their jobs.
Ngakane said:
We’ve left our hopes in the authorities and wait anxiously to see justice being served.
News24 has seen videos Gumbi recorded and posted online weeks before his murder. The videos suggest Gumbi knew of a possible threat to his life.
In one video, he spoke about the pending development of a smart city near Sun City in Ledig, Rustenburg.
“Kubu (their company) has rights over the land, and no threat will stop what needs to be done there regarding the development. Those are the rights we have, legally so. The issue that the Gumbi homestead will be burnt and that I will be burnt will not stop the development. Nothing will stop the development. The development will go ahead. Do what you want to do, and the law will take its course,” Gumbi said in the video.
Whether his detractors like or hate him, he said, they will not gain anything by killing him.
READ | Police plead with public to stop sharing video of man being shot outside Rustenburg coffee shop
“I’ll pride myself on the fact that at least I have died for changing people’s lives. You’ll be in jail for whatever stupid thing you do. At least I would have died for what I love. With threats or no threats, the development will go ahead,” he said.
One of Gumbi’s relatives, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of being victimised, said he had received death threats from a land development dispute.
The relative said Gumbi was part of a community trust that owned land in Rustenburg, set for a smart city development.
Some people were alleged to have illegally occupied the land.
“They had built houses and didn’t want to move because they felt they would be losing,” the relative said.