Following Zinhle Mabena’s arrest last night under suspicions of having conspired to have her ex-husband murdered, she appeared in court today and was acquitted of those charges. On what she described as a night from hell, the former Isibaya actress told Daily Sun that she was traumatized after having spent the night in police detention.
Zinhle Mabena appeared at the Pretoria Magistrate Court in Tshwane today and was facing two charges of murder and attempted murder. Last month her ex-husband, Robert Ngwenya was ambushed at a petrol station after three men opened fire and shot at his vehicle. During the attack, his body guard died and he later told the media that he has been receiving death threats leading up to the incident.
Phil Mphela tweeted, “Mabena, known for playing Sihle on Isibaya, was arrested last night for an alleged conspiracy to murder her husband. The attempted murder incident took place in January, resulting in the death of the husband’s bodyguard.
“In January Robert Ngwenya, Zinhle Mabena’s husband, survived an ambush attack. Three men reported opened fire on his car while he was still inside. At the time, Ngwenya told media that he had been receiving death threats since May.”
After spending a night under police custody, the prosecutor threw the case out and acquitted Zinhle of all these charges. The prosecutor also deemed her arrest unlawful. The actress told Daily Sun that she was traumatized by what transpired last night but thanked her family for standing by her despite the ‘lies’ which are spreading like wildfire.
“I cannot pretend and begin to explain how traumatic last night was for me to spend a night in police detention. I thank my family, close friends and my legal team for their support and faith in my innocence despite the despicable and utter lies that are spreading against me.”
Her lawyers Shapiro and Ledwaba Incorporated also confirmed in a statement seen by the publication that she was arrested unlawfully and said she is now a free woman, “I act on behalf of Zinhle and confirm that she was unlawfully taken into custody yesterday but is now a free woman after the NPA declined to place the matter on the roll, because of the preposterous nature of the allegations against our client. We can also confirm that nothing plausible was provided to the authorities to link our client to any crime including but not limited to Murder or attempted murder or any conspiracy of sought.
Her lawyers seem to think these allegations come from her ex-husband who she has divorced, “All these mischievous allegations ironically come from her husband who she has recently filed a divorce against, and against whom our client has obtained an Interim Protection Order,” read the statement.