A suspect accused of murdering activist Loyiso Nkohla chose not to seek bail when he appeared in the Athlone Magistrates’ Court on Monday. 

The State told the court that Zukisa Tshabile (38) and three others, who are still at large, fatally shot Nkohla after being hired to kill him.

The State said the mastermind behind the killing was the boss of a security company. Daily Maverick has established that the authorities are closing in on this person.  

Petitions filed by organisations and individuals asking the court to deny Tshabile bail were submitted to the court. 

At the time of his death, Nkohla was attending a community meeting about a security company that allegedly failed to pay its workers. Nkohla was at the meeting to mediate between the parties in the dispute.

At the time of his arrest, Tshabile was out on bail and faces an additional 17 counts of attempted murder.  

Read more in Daily Maverick: Shock and sadness after former ‘poo fighter’ Loyiso Nkohla gunned down in Philippi

Nkohla was gunned down in Philippi, Cape Town, on 17 April inside what used to be a mobile police station site. Three other people, including a pregnant woman and a former ANC councillor, were injured when four gunmen opened fire. 

Nkohla was involved in relocating people who had occupied the railway station and parts of the railway line at Philippi. 

He came into the national spotlight in 2013 when he and former ANC councillor Andile Lili led a group of people who dumped faeces on the steps of the Western Cape legislature to protest over Khayelitsha residents’ inadequate sanitation, an act which earned him the sobriquet “poo fighter”.   

Read more in Daily Maverick: Suspect arrested for ‘killing’ activist Loyiso Nkohla appears in court

Nkohla’s wife, Nyameka Mabandla, said, “I continue to plead with Mr Tshabile to cooperate with law enforcement agencies and tell the truth about the murder of my husband. 

“I listened with shock that the accused is linked to so many other criminal cases and that we are, in fact, dealing with a hardened criminal who has terrorised our society for a long time.” 

The case was postponed to 15 February and Tshabile remains in custody. DM