Almost 18 months after Minister of Transport Sindisiwe Chikunga lost six relatives, including her eldest son, in a horror crash on the N11 near Ladysmith, a man has appeared in court.
Celumusa Ngwenya, 34, made his first appearance in the Ladysmith Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday morning.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Ngwenya was charged with six counts of culpable homicide.
Spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said this relates to the motor vehicle accident that occurred on July 17, 2022, on the N11 highway outside Ladysmith.
“The deceased were family members of Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga and were aged between four and 40-years-old.”
At the time of the accident, IOL reported that their vehicle was involved in a head-on collision with another car, whose driver sustained serious injuries and was being treated in hospital.
Ramkisson-Kara said that following the accident and prosecutor-guided investigations, Ngwenya appeared in court on a summons.
“During court proceedings today, he opted for Legal Aid assistance, and the matter was remanded to February 14 for consultation and copies of the docket.”
She said Ngwenya will remain out on warning since he was brought to court on a summons.
During the festive season, a total of eight people lost their lives in two separate crashes on the N3 near Ladysmith.
In the first crash on Christmas Eve, two cars collided at high speed, resulting in the deaths of five people.
IOL News