Menzi Jali was reportedly charging the equivalent of around £22 a month to three tenants, who allegedly attacked him over a disagreement about their status
A landlord has allegedly been hacked to death after he tried to evict a group of tenants who were refusing to pay the rent. 45-year-old Menzi Jali from Parkgate, near the South African city of Durban, was allegedly attacked by men who had been renting rooms on his property.
A female relative of the victim told local reporters that the three suspects moved onto the property in February 2026 and had agreed to pay 500 rand (£22) a month in rent, according to South Africa’s Daily Sun.
The relative claimed the tenants paid during the first and third months but allegedly stopped paying regularly after that, sometimes arguing that the payment should be a reduced to a fraction and other times outright refusing to pay.
She alleges that landlord Jali had decided to confront he men over the outstanding rent payments on June 19, and that when they once again refused to pay up he was forced to call the police in order to boot them from the property.
Officers did attend the scene and managed to persuade the men to leave, although the trio allegedly threatened to Jali that they would return.
His relative told The Daily Sun, “He was scared. He believed they would come back and kill him”, adding that Jali had contacted another family member due to these fears who joined him at the property.
Reports allege the former tenants returned to the house with a sharp weapon and attacked him.
“He ran away and they followed him until they caught him. They assaulted him and chopped off his arms,” she said.
The relative further alleged that the suspects threatened anyone who spoke about the killing.
She said the rental apartments belonged to Jali’s mother, who had left them to him as a way for her son to make money.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Paul Magwaza confirmed that Verulam police had opened a murder case.
A statement read: “It is alleged that the victim was socialising with his tenants when an altercation ensued. The victim was allegedly assaulted with a sharp object which led to his demise. The suspects are still at large.”
Police investigations are continuing.
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