Engar Mohamed Shafee

Age 67. The attack took place at approximately 23:00 on Noodhulp Farm, located in the Winterton area of KwaZulu-Natal, where Engar ran a localized milling business. A heavily armed gang of men stormed the property and initially shot a farm employee, Lebaka Fortunate Tsotetsi, in the leg and stomach. The attackers then confronted Engar at his mill, where they severely beat him and stabbed him multiple times. They dragged him into the primary farmhouse and turned their attention to his wife, Razia Engar. The assailants forced her to lie on her stomach and systematically tortured both her and her husband for over two hours using a hot domestic steam iron, inflicting severe, widespread body and leg burns. The attackers packed cash and household goods into bags, loaded them into Engar's personal vehicle, and fled the scene. Engar, who was already recovering from a separate gunshot wound sustained during a robbery on the property in February of that same year, was placed on life support but succumbed to his stab wounds and severe trauma after his family made the decision to switch off the machine.The initial breakthrough came via private investigators from Magma Investigation and Security, led by Shaheen Suleiman, who collaborated with the Winterton Police to trace the suspects to Ladysmith, Ekuvukeni, and Ezakheni. Police executed targeted raids, recovering four 9mm pistols with altered serial numbers, a stolen 12-gauge pump-action shotgun belonging to Engar, and various stolen personal belongings. Seven men were initially apprehended, including one of Engar's own farm workers.During the criminal trial before Acting Judge Anand Maharaj at the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Pietermaritzburg, the state presented fingerprint matches alongside ballistics linking a cartridge case from the crime scene directly to a firearm found on the suspects. Two of the accused, Mbongeleni Nkabinde and Bongani Mazibuko, were acquitted due to insufficient evidence. On June 30, 2015, the remaining four main attackers—Sifiso Mabuza, Lindelani Mtshali, Sabelo Ndlovu, and Mduduzi Nene—were found guilty of murder, multiple counts of aggravated robbery, and the attempted murder of the farm employee. The court ruled that although it was unclear who delivered the specific fatal stab wounds, all four individuals fully associated themselves with the actions and violent foresight of the gang