Ford Ranger murder: Police believe Ali Mugoya aka Arizona can help in ongoing investigation
The South African Police Service in Gauteng is seeking to interview Ali Mugoya, also known as Arizona, whom they believe can help in an ongoing probe around the murder of Emmanuel Mahamba in April 2025.
Image: Facebook
It is more than a month after the shocking incident where Emmanuel Mahamba was brutally murdered during a fight linked to a love triangle in Joburg, and the South African Police Service (SAPS) is still investigating circumstances around the incident.
The disturbing murder was recorded in a video which went viral last month, where a grey Ford Ranger double cab bakkie was used in the attack.
In the video, widely circulated on social media platforms, Mahamba, a Zimbabwean national, is lying flat on the road surface while the Ford Ranger bakkie runs over him repeatedly. He died at the scene.
Gauteng police said they are searching for the motorist implicated in the brutal attack, which happened after a heated dispute.
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The murder incident happened on April 5, 2025, in Rivonia, Sandton.
In the latest development, the SAPS in Gauteng has told IOL that they are seeking to interview a man called Ali Mugoya in relation to the ongoing investigation.
Masondo confirmed to IOL that Mugoya is the man seen in pictures shared widely on social media.
“We believe Mr Ali Mugoya, also known as Arizona, can help with our investigation,” Masondo told IOL.
Anyone with information regarding Mugoya's whereabouts is requested to contact the investigating officer, Constable Ndou Murabeleni on 076 416 5664 or 069 591 6447.
Police believe Ali Mugoya, also known as Arizona, can help in the ongoing investigation around the murder of Emmanuel Mahamba last month.
Image: Facebook
Last month, Joburg-based activist and businessman, Moreboys Munetsi had intervened to assist the family of the murdered man.
At the time, Munetsi, a lawyer by profession, said he was providing legal support to the victim's family.
On Wednesday, Munetsi told IOL that frustration is growing amongst Mahamba's family and friends, with days passing and there is no justice for the deceased. Munetsi said while Mugoya is on the run, some of his companies are still operating in South Africa.
"The family of Emmanuel is very frustrated with the way the case is going, considering that there is no progress at all. It is alleged that some of his companies are still operating. This sounds as if he is still around the area. Previously, the police informed the family that the wanted guy was seen around Springs, but until now there is no update," he said.
"To tell you the truth, the mobile phone of the accused person is still working, both on voice calls and on WhatsApp. Police should use their technology to trace him. Since his business is working, it means they should monitor all the transactions, that can help police to investigate.
"The police should take more action on this case. The family is frustrated," said Munetsi.
On his Facebook page, which has more than 144,000 followers, Munetsi previously held a live conversation with Ntombi, the woman who was involved in a relationship with Mahamba, while she lived with her other romantic partner, Mugoya.
The Ugandan man, Mugoya, who has two children with Ntombi, allegedly murdered Mahamba in the bakkie attack.
In the conversation between Munetsi and Ntombi, she referred to Mugoya as her “baby daddy” and she also admitted that she had been in a relationship with Mahamba.
“I agree that I once dated Emmanuel in January, and we broke up in February. Yes, we were in a relationship. We broke up because some Ugandans recorded a video of me when I was with the guy (Emmanuel Mahamba). My baby daddy is a Ugandan. So I broke up with Emmanuel for my safety, for my kids and also for the sake of Emmanuel. I stopped talking to Emmanuel.
Ntombi said on the fateful day, Emmanuel and some Ugandan men came over to her work premises. Emmanuel and the Ugandan men rented the same house. On the day, Mugoya was already at Ntombi’s workplace, a shop where motorbike parts are sold.
A woman, only identified as Ntombi, narrated how her baby daddy, a Ugandan national called Ali Mugoya, allegedly murdered her former boyfriend, Zimbabwean national Emmanuel Mahamba.
Image: Supplied/Photogrid IOL
“Later on, I heard some noise, people fighting. When I went outside, I asked Emmanuel what he was doing, but he did not even respond to me; he only looked at me. He was holding a stone, and he threw it away. He picked it again and hit the vehicle’s (wind) screen. That is when my baby daddy got angry, went to Emmanuel and beat him,” she said.
In the video, Ntombi can be seen screaming, frantically trying to stop the Ford Ranger driver.
Narrating how she fell in love with the deceased man, Ntombi said she met Emmanuel at Rivonia, Sandton, as he used to come to the shop that she works at, buying motorbike parts.
She said when she met Emmanuel this year, she was still involved with the Ugandan man although the relationship was experiencing some “difficulties”. Ntombi was living with the Ugandan man when she started dating Emmanuel.
“I had to date Emmanuel,” she told Munetsi in the Facebook live session.
Ntombi has two children with the Ugandan man and the two have been in a relationship for around three years.
jonisayi.maromo@iol.co.za
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