Three brothers have been charged with murder in Eswatini after allegedly beating their mother’s boyfriend to death over claims that he was involved in a romantic relationship with her.

The accused — Mlondi Mbuli, 25, Sakhelwe Mbuli, 18, and Lindani Mdziniso, 23 — appeared before the Mbabane Magistrates Court in connection with the killing, which reportedly occurred on June 28, 2026, in Hholoshini, located in the country’s Hhohho Region.

During the hearing, Principal Magistrate Sfiso Vilakati ordered that the three men remain in custody until July 10, 2026, while prosecutors prepare to transfer the case to the High Court, where murder cases are typically tried.

According to investigators, the suspects allegedly attacked the victim, identified as Njabulo Ngwenya, using bricks, stones, sticks, punches and repeated kicks, inflicting injuries that proved fatal.

Police believe the alleged assault stemmed from accusations that Ngwenya was having an affair with the
brothers’ biological mother.

The incident came to the attention of authorities after Sibongile Motsa reported finding her son dead inside her sister’s home in the early hours of June 28.

Court documents state that Motsa discovered Ngwenya’s body at about 1 a.m. before notifying the Royal Eswatini Police Service, which subsequently launched an investigation and arrested the three suspects.

Following their first court appearance, the accused were remanded in custody pending the next hearing and the formal transfer of the matter to the High Court.

Authorities have not disclosed additional information beyond the facts presented during the initial court proceedings.

The case has drawn widespread public interest across Eswatini as investigations continue.

Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland before Mswati III officially renamed the country in 2018, is a landlocked nation in southern Africa bordered by South Africa and Mozambique. Under the country’s judicial system, serious criminal offences such as murder are generally transferred from the Magistrates Court to the High Court after the initial hearing.

Former Secretary to Benue State Government (SSG), Prof. David Salifu, has been killed after suspected armed men ambushed and shot him along the Wukari–Joota Road in Katsina-Ala Local Government Area, LGA, a border community between Benue and Taraba states.

Salifu, a Professor of Public Administration and former Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Federal University Wukari, was reportedly travelling to Makurdi for the burial of his uncle when he encountered the attackers.

He sustained gunshot injuries during the attack and was initially rushed to a hospital in Wukari, where doctors removed bullets from his stomach.

He was later transferred to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Makurdi, but succumbed to his injuries at about midnight on Thursday.

A former aide to the deceased, Mr. Ben Ekah, who confirmed the incident, said Salifu and his driver were returning to Benue from the Federal University Wukari when they were ambushed.

According to him, the driver’s account revealed that the gunmen stopped their vehicle, dragged the former SSG out and attempted to whisk him away.

“The driver said they were coming from the Federal University Wukari where Prof. Salifu lectures when they were waylaid along the Wukari–Joota Road, a border route between Taraba and Benue states.

“The attackers were trying to take him away, and he kept asking them what they wanted. As they continued dragging him, one of them suddenly pulled out a gun and shot him at close range in the stomach.

“They abandoned him after the shooting, leaving him in a pool of blood. His driver, however, managed to take him back to Wukari, where surgeons successfully removed the bullets from his stomach.

“On Thursday, he was referred to the Federal Medical Centre in Makurdi for further treatment, but sadly he passed away around midnight,” Ekah said.

He described the late Professor as a humble and peace-loving man, noting that he had left a Senate meeting at the university to attend his uncle’s burial before the fatal attack.

“He was a lecturer and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Federal University Wukari. We learnt that the university management was holding a Senate meeting, but he excused himself to travel home for his uncle’s burial. It is heartbreaking because everyone knew him as a peaceful man,” Ekah added.

Prof. Salifu served as Secretary to Benue State Government during the administration of former Governor Gabriel Suswam between January 2011 and May 2015.

The Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Udeme Edet, could not be reached at the time of this report.

Another batch of Nigerians evacuated from South Africa amid ongoing anti-migrant violence arrived safely at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Friday, as the Federal Government continued efforts to bring home citizens affected by the unrest.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, disclosed that the Air Peace charter flight conveyed 268 returnees, alongside two officers and crew members, from Johannesburg to Lagos.

According to the minister, the special flight, funded by the Federal Government, departed Oliver Tambo International Airport at 5:36 a.m.

In a statement posted on her X handle, Odumegwu-Ojukwu said President Bola Tinubu had directed that the evacuation exercise should continue despite the expiration of the June 30 ultimatum issued by anti-migrant groups in South Africa.

“The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, has directed that the evacuation of Nigerian nationals from South Africa at risk as a result of the ongoing xenophobic protests and attacks continues, even after the deadline of 30th June 2026,” she said.

She noted that three earlier evacuation flights had already brought home nearly 600 Nigerians before the deadline, adding that the exercise remains ongoing for all citizens who voluntarily registered and were duly screened.

“The evacuations remain ongoing. The Federal Government is committed to bringing home safely our Nationals who voluntarily registered to be evacuated and have been duly screened and cleared,” the minister said.

She reaffirmed that protecting Nigerians abroad remains a key priority of the administration.

“Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in adherence to that unbreakable bond between citizen and state, remains dedicated to this mandate,” she added, describing the protection of Nigerians overseas as “a central pillar of the Renewed Hope Agenda.”

The evacuation comes as anti-immigrant protests intensified across South Africa, where demonstrators have demanded the departure of undocumented foreign nationals, blaming them for unemployment and pressure on public services.

The latest wave of violence has reportedly claimed at least four lives, while several African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique, have organised voluntary repatriation for their citizens.

The Nigerian government has also indicated plans to engage South African authorities on compensation for businesses and properties abandoned by affected Nigerians.