Friend describes AKA and Tibz’ final moments at Durban High Court

Friend testifies about final moments before the shooting

Lusaso Ngcobo, a Durban musician and event organiser, gave evidence at the Durban High Court on Tuesday about the moments that followed gunfire outside Wish restaurant on Florida Road.

Ngcobo asked that his face not be shown while testifying. He told the court he had known rapper Kiernan ‘AKA’ Forbes for more than a decade and that he also knew celebrity chef Tebello ‘Tibz’ Motsoane through the music industry.

How the evening unfolded, according to the witness

Ngcobo said he arrived at the Bryd and Groom hair salon on Florida Road at about 18:30 on 10 February 2023, which he described as his usual Friday routine. About 15 minutes later, AKA arrived with his entourage and the court heard had a haircut during his first visit to the salon.

After spending time catching up, Ngcobo said the group moved on to Wish restaurant for dinner. He told the court they discussed AKA’s plans that evening, including the upcoming release of his album Mass Country, which was later released posthumously on 24 February 2023.

Ngcobo said Motsoane joined them at the restaurant during the roughly two hours the group spent there. They left the restaurant through a corridor that led outside; Ngcobo said he was among those walking at the front, while AKA and Motsoane were behind him.

The shooting and immediate aftermath

The witness recounted that, once the party reached the pavement, they exchanged goodbyes and he turned back toward the corridor intending to return inside. He said AKA was standing to his right, speaking with Motsoane, and was about an arm’s length away just before gunfire erupted.

Ngcobo said he first heard a sound he thought was like fireworks. He described an initial instinct to duck and only afterwards realising the sound was gunfire when people began running.

“Right at that moment I heard a loud bang like fireworks. My first reaction was to duck because I wasn’t sure what was happening.”

He told the court he ran back toward the corridor with others and saw Motsoane trip and fall. Ngcobo said he went to check on Motsoane before noticing AKA lying on the ground.

Ngcobo said he approached AKA, checked him and asked if he was okay. In court he recounted that AKA repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe”. As they examined him, they found a wound by his chest underneath his arm.

Those present called for assistance and attempted to stem the bleeding with towels while waiting for help to arrive, Ngcobo told the court.

Accused and charges named in court papers

The state has charged several people in connection with the attack. The names and the charges read into the record in reporting included:

• Lindokuhle Mkhwanazi
• Lindani Ndimande
• Siyanda Myeza
• Mziwethemba Gwabeni
• Lindokuhle Ndimande
• Malusi Ndimande
• Siyabonga Ndimande

The accused face a total of 11 charges including conspiracy to commit murder, murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, five counts of attempted murder and money laundering, according to the account given in court.

Why this testimony is being heard in open court

Eyewitness accounts like Ngcobo’s are commonly presented in criminal trials to establish what those at the scene observed and experienced. In this case, the witness described the sequence of events leading up to and immediately after the gunfire, the location of those involved and the responses of people on the scene.

Such testimony can be used to link events and timing as experienced by bystanders, to describe victims’ statements and to record the immediate reactions of people present. The legal process then assesses that testimony alongside other evidence presented by the state and the defence.

What the day in court added to the record

Ngcobo’s evidence provided a detailed account of the evening’s timeline as he saw it: the hair salon visit, the dinner at Wish restaurant, the short walk outside through the corridor, the sound of the gunfire and his actions during the chaos that followed.

He gave specific, first-hand observations about both victims at the scene that Motsoane had tripped and that AKA was found on the ground with a wound near his chest, uttering that he could not breathe and described efforts by those present to provide immediate assistance.

Next steps in the trial

The witness appearance was one element of the ongoing proceedings in the Durban High Court. The court heard Ngcobo’s testimony as part of the state’s case against the named accused. Reporting indicated the testimony took place on a Tuesday; the article reporting the account was published on 20 October 2026 and subsequently updated on 21 October 2026.

As with any court process, the material presented by witnesses, the prosecution and the defence will be weighed by the judicial process in the days and hearings to come.