Ex-convict turned politician Gayton McKenzie, the leader of the Patriotic Alliance, insists his former inmate and party deputy president Kenny Kunene was “set up” after he was found at the home of DJ Sumbody’s alleged killer.
“If there’s a murder that happened and there are only two suspects, me and Kenny, I must be the main suspect. You know, Kenny could’ve had a gun, had a fly,” McKenzie said on the sidelines of the National Assembly in Cape Town on Wednesday afternoon.
“That guy has such a soft character. Let me tell you, the mistake with him – that’s my fight with him always – is that he’s too accessible. You call Kenny and ask, ‘Where are you?’ He says, ‘I’m in the squatter camp; there’s a party going on.’ Next time, ‘I’m in the suburbs meeting someone.’ He’s never at home. He’s always busy, and he’s accessible.”
McKenzie, who also serves as Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture and met Kunene while the two were in prison years ago, strongly defended him, maintaining Kunene had no involvement and was likely “set up.”
“But I can tell you, man, he doesn’t believe it was a setup, but I do…He says to me, ‘No, no, it wasn’t a setup. It was pure coincidence.’ I said to him, ‘You were there during the time of the arrest.’ I have no proof, but I can’t say for a fact – I just have a gut feeling.”
He said only a proper investigation can prove what really happened.
“People must also know we’ve worked very hard to rebuild our reputation coming from jail. We’ve worked very, very hard. We will never – and I’m speaking for Mr. Kunene – we will never risk that by associating with these guys, even if they did this thing,” McKenzie said.
“If they are guilty… I was just looking at this thing – one gun killing ten people.”
“These are images from the crime underworld. Why would we even mix with criminals? I know about crime. When I heard that one gun killed ten people, I already knew we were dealing with crime figures.”
“I want to congratulate the cops again – I’m glad they caught them, and you will not find me or Mr. Kunene in the company of such people. What happened was very unfortunate,” he added.
McKenzie added that a law firm to investigate Kunene’s involvement would be announced on Friday.
On Tuesday, McKenzie also defended Kunene after he was found at the home of the alleged mastermind behind DJ Sumbody’s murder, saying that “he is innocent and has got nothing to hide.”
Speaking in a Facebook Live session on Tuesday night, McKenzie said he had spoken to Kunene on Monday while he was in Namibia and was assured Kunene had done nothing wrong.
“He said, ‘Yeah, I went there.’ He was supposed to meet someone, and that person told him to meet at that house and sent a location pin. It was his first time at the house,” McKenzie said.
He said Kunene told him he did not know the owner of the house, identified as Sandton businessman Katiso “KT” Molefe, who was arrested on Monday in connection with the 2022 murder of DJ Sumbody, whose real name was Oupa John Sefoka.
“When he got there, they were just sitting… He doesn’t know Molefe,” McKenzie said.
“He knows the other guy who sent the location pin. The police came, told everyone to get on the floor. Kenny complied.”
According to McKenzie, police asked Kunene if he knew Molefe.
However, Kunene said he did not and explained someone else had sent the location. Police searched his phone and found no communication with Molefe, McKenzie said.
“They came back and said, ‘Kenny, we’re sorry. Here’s your phone. You can leave,’” he added.
IOL News previously reported that Kunene later confirmed that he was at Molefe’s house at the time of the arrest.
He said he was there with a young journalist from his media company to allow Molefe to respond to the murder allegations.
McKenzie said he received several calls from journalists asking whether he believed Kunene’s version of events.
“100%, I do. I believe in him 100%. Let me tell you who Kenny Kunene is. People think Kenny is my friend. Kenny was my friend – he’s now a brother to me.”
McKenzie added that Kunene inspired him to turn his life around in prison.
“Kenny is the godfather of my children. I’m the godfather of his. I don’t even hang out with Kenny… he’s a socialite; I’m not. But I know Kenny, and I know he’s not a violent person.”
He also claimed that Kunene admired DJ Sumbody and other deejays.
“He loved DJ Sumbody. He had nothing to gain by being involved in such a thing. That’s not him,” McKenzie said.
“I personally think he was set up. Kenny doesn’t believe that, but I do. I can’t prove it yet, but this thing smells like a setup.”
McKenzie has since announced that he placed Kunene on a 30-day leave of absence from his role as MMC and from all party duties pending the outcome of the internal investigation.
“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do – ask Kenny Kunene to step aside. But the party must always come first. No one is bigger than the party.”
He said a team of independent lawyers would be appointed to probe Kunene’s presence at Molefe’s home, with findings expected within 30 days.
“This is a serious allegation. Even though I believe he’s innocent, the matter must be thoroughly investigated,” McKenzie said.
Kunene’s visit came just as there was a major breakthrough in the DJ Sumbody murder case.
On Tuesday, the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court granted the state a seven-day postponement in the case involving four men charged in the November 2022 triple murder.
The accused, Michael Pule Tau, Tiego Floyd Mabusela, Musa Kekana, and Molefe, face charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of DJ Sumbody and his bodyguards, Sibusiso Mokoena and Sandile Myeza.
Prosecutors said the postponement was necessary to investigate new leads following the suspects’ arrests across Gauteng earlier this week.
simon.majadibodu@iol.co.za
IOL Politics
