KEY POINTS
- A Limpopo farmer and two workers are accused of double murder.
- The victims’ bodies were allegedly dumped in a pigsty after the attack.
- A survivor recalls being shot and escaping to seek help.
August has been set aside for the trial of Zachariah Johannes Olivier, a farmer from the Limpopo province, and two employees who are charged with killing two women and disposing of their remains in a pigsty.
Limpopo farmer and workers accused of brutal double murder
Premeditated murder, attempted murder, obstruction of justice, and possession of an unregistered firearm and ammunition are among the allegations against Olivier, farm supervisor Rudolph de Wet, and Zimbabwean farmworker William Musora. In addition, Musora is accused of breaking the Immigration Act.
According to Mashudu Malabi-Dzangi, a spokesman for the Limpopo National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the three males, who are still in detention, made a brief appearance before the Mankweng Magistrate’s Court this week. “The State has served the accused with an indictment after the investigations are finished. Their case has been rescheduled for trial at the High Court in Polokwane from August 4 to August 15, 2025,” Malabi-Dzangi stated.
Authorities claim that after the victims entered the Onvervaght farm to retrieve expired items that had been dumped by a commercial vehicle, the men shot and killed 47-year-old Mariah Makgato and 34-year-old Kudzai Ndlovu. They also allegedly injured Ndlovu’s husband, Mabutho Ncube. While Ncube survived after being shot, Makgato and Ndlovu perished at the site.
Survivor recounts harrowing attack that left his wife dead
In his later account of the assault, Ncube claimed that he was shot and left for dead before escaping to get assistance. “The initial shot was sent into the atmosphere. “I was hit by the second bullet, Makgato by the third, and my wife by the fourth,” Ncube stated.
According to Iol, he went to the main road and was helped by a friend who drove him to a police station. After that, he was taken to a hospital and had urgent surgery.
While still in the hospital, Ncube heard a few days later that the two women’s remains had been found in the pigsty on the farm. “I thought my wife was in the hospital’s women’s ward,” he stated. “That hurt me so much.”
