By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Palm Ridge Magistrate Court has acquitted ActionSA’s Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate, Xolani Khumalo and co-accused on charges of assault and pointing of firearm.
The court handed Khumalo and his co-accused, Duma Radebe, a discharge under section 174, and both were found not guilty.
Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 in South Africa allows an accused person to apply for a discharge (acquittal) at the close of the prosecution’s (State’s) case.
The charges against Khumalo stemmed from a televised anti-drug raid on 19 December 2025, during which a suspected drug dealer in Katlehong, Ekurhuleni, alleged that Khumalo and others assaulted him and threatened him with a firearm at his home.
Following their arrests in January 2026, Radebe was granted bail of R500, while Khumalo was released on R2 000 bail.
The state alleged the complainant, identified in court as Bongani Radebe, was physically assaulted and threatened during the raid. The court heard that the complainant said he was struck and beaten with a firearm and had a weapon pointed at him in contravention of the Firearms Control Act.
However, both accused maintained their innocence and entered not-guilty pleas, ultimately cleared by the court.
The magistrate granted both men a discharge under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act, formally ruling that they were not guilty after the state failed to present a solid case.
ActionSA welcomed the ruling, saying this politically motivated case was a retaliation by those linked to drug syndicates that have invested heavily in destroying the youth of this country.
“Clir Xolani Khumalo will now focus fully on his mayoral campaign, engaging with residents across Ekurhuleni and working tirelessly to dismantle drug syndicates in our communities, said the party.”
In April 2025, he was acquitted of charges related to the death of drug dealer, a case that had drawn significant public attention.
The 2026 SA municipal elections are scheduled to take place between November 2 2026 and February 1 2027.
The elections will determine the composition of councils for all metropolitan, local, and district municipalities across SA.
In Ekurhuleni, the municipal council consists of 224 members, with half elected through first-past-the-post voting in 112 wards and the other half through proportional representation.