ZiMoja updates on the latest crime news in parts of the country. 

MPUMALANGA: Unlicenced taxi driver, Nkosinathi Sibanyoni was sentenced to ten years by the Elukwatini Regional Court in Mpumalanga for culpable homicide. Sibanyoni was transporting children aged four to 12 to and from school when the incident took place in February 2022. Police spokesperson Colonel Donald Mdhluli said the court heard that Sibanyoni parked the taxi that he was driving on the side of the road between Dundonald and Mayflower near Elukwatini when the incident happened. "He took one of the children and was busy enabling the child to cross over the road when the taxi he left unattended, plunged into the nearby river, resulting in the nine children losing their lives. The said taxi was occupied by the children, and it was later discovered that safety measures to prevent the vehicle from moving were somehow not taken into consideration by the driver," Mdhluli said. He added that an investigation was conducted, leading to the arrest of Sibanyoni, who was put on trial and convicted.

KWAZULU-NATAL: A police officer shot and killed his girlfriend outside a restaurant on Florida Road in Durban yesterday morning. Two other people were shot dead during the shooting by the cop. KZN police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said cases of murder and attempted murder are being investigated. "This follows an incident in which a man shot and killed his girlfriend at a restaurant on Florida Road. It is reported that the man, an off-duty police officer, went to his girlfriend's workplace. The woman allegedly went out to meet him only for him to draw his service pistol and fire shots at her. The victim ran back inside the restaurant, and the man followed her as he continued shooting. She was declared dead at the scene,' Netshiunda said. He said two more people sustained gunshot injuries during the incident. "Metropolice officers who were patrolling the area witnessed the incident and shot the suspect, who was taken to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.' Police said the motive of the killing is unknown at this stage; however, domestic related issues cannot be ruled out.

GAUTENG: Illegal foreign nationals, Emery Niyomuremyi (35) from Burundi, Amina Lameck (34) from Malawi, and Kelechi Maduike (38) from Nigeria, appeared at the Hatfield Magistrates Court yesterday on charges of contravening the Immigration Act. The National Prosecuting Authority alleged that Babel and Ocean Basket restaurants in Menlyn Mall employed all three accused, who are illegal in the country. Both Lameck, who is employed as a chef, and Maduike, who is employed as a stock manager, work at Babel, while Niyomuremyi works at Ocean Basket as a delivery man. The three were arrested on the evening of 15 September 2024 at the restaurants by the Department of Home Affairs after they conducted a raid at both restaurants," said NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana. This came after a video was circulated on TikTok by a disgruntled Babel former employee expressing her dissatisfaction regarding her employer's treatment and alleging that the restaurant is violating the Labour Relations Act. "The matter of Lameck and Niyomuremyi has been remanded to 19 and 20 September 2024 for a formal bail application. Maduike's matter is remanded to October 2, 2024, for a formal bail application." The manager of Babel restaurant, Raui Kobeissi (42), who was also arrested with the three, was released at the Brooklyn Police Station after he paid R10,000 admission of guilt fine.