9th Person Dies in Hospital in Pienaar Tavern Shootings As 2 Suspects Make Bail Appearances
- The death toll from the shooting incident at a tavern in Pienaar, Mpumalanga, on 11 January 2025, rose to nine
- Two men arrested on 12 and 14 January 2025, respectively, appeared for a second time in the Kabokweni Magistrate's Court
- Mpumalanga police spokesperson Lt-Col Jabu Ndubane told Briefly News only one victim remained recovering in hospital
Source: Original
PIENAAR — The toll has further risen following the death of a ninth person from the shooting incident at a Pienaar tavern in Mpumalanga 10 days ago.
Initially, six people died at the scene after gunmen stormed an establishment at about 4am and fired on at least 11 people.
Pienaar shootings suspects in court
Five were rushed to hospital, three of whom were in critical condition. A further two deaths were reported that day, raising the number of those dead to eight.
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Of the deceased, two were women and six men, while a woman and two men remained in hospital. One of them was later discharged, leaving two behind.
Police spokesperson Lt-Col Jabu Ndubane told Briefly News on Tuesday, 21 January 2025, that only one victim remained in hospital after the latest death.
"However, they are not in critical condition, and it looks like they're on the way to a full recovery," said Ndubane.
Meanwhile, police have so far arrested two people for the killings. Two men, who have since made their first appearances, appeared for a second time on Tuesday in the Kabokweni Magistrate's Court for a formal bail application.
Watch a video of their appearance here.
Police arrested the first suspect, Bongani Patrick Nkosi, on Sunday, 12 January, one day after the shootings, before appearing in court on 14 January.
During his arrest, a pistol with about 13 live rounds was seized. After his initial appearance, the state postponed the case while Nkosi, 39, remained in custody.
A second arrest followed the same day when police apprehended Mduduzi "Kehla" Lubisi and confiscated three handguns. Lubisi, 43, made his first appearance on 16 January. The case was subsequently postponed to 21 January for a formal bail application while remaining in custody.
Nkosi and Lubisi appeared side by side in the dock, facing nine murders and two attempted murder charges.
This is a developing story. The outcome of their court appearance will be published once more information is available.
Alleged Inanda killers to appear in court
In related news, Briefly News reported that police arrested 12 people after five youths were found hacked to death with their remains scattered in Inanda.
The discovery was made on the morning of Friday, 17 January, after the men, aged 19 to 26, were allegedly abducted from their homes at about midnight.
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Source: Briefly News
