Johannesburg - The director of a new documentary on the notorious killer, Nomia Rosemary Ndlovu, believes that it is a uniquely South African tale which will have viewers glued to their screens.
Valen’tino Mathibela, the director of “Rosemary’s Hitlist”, which debuts on Showmax this month, explained that it was both fascinating and intriguing how she committed her crimes.
“The story is about a cop who discovered the loopholes in both the legal systems and the insurance market, which she manipulated to enrich herself by killing her family members as a trusted breadwinner,” she told The Saturday Star this week.
“The audience is looking for answers where the court couldn’t afford them that satisfaction, but we also can’t air everything,” she said.
On October 12, 2015, Ndlovu’s live-in lover, Yingwani Maurice Mabasa, the father of her only living child at the time, went missing. Three days later, his body was found in Olifantsfontein – with 76 stab wounds. Mabasa had 16 policies in his name, totalling over R400 000 – and Ndlovu was the beneficiary of all of them.
These weren’t the first payouts from suspicious deaths to Ndlovu. She was eventually sentenced in 2021 to six concurrent life terms for the murders of not only Mabasa, but also five of her family members: her sister, two nephews, a niece and a cousin. Together, their ‘killsurance’ was worth over R1.4 million to Ndlovu.
She was also sentenced to an additional 30 years: 10 years each for fraud, incitement to commit murder, and the attempted murder of her mother, Maria Mushwana, her sister Joyce, and Joyce’s five children.
Handing down the judgment, the late Judge Ramarumo Monama compared Ndlovu to the 1932 murder case of Daisy de Melker, saying South Africa hadn’t seen anything else similar in the last 89 years.
“Rosemary’s Hitlist”, a true crime series about the former cop’s deadly escapades, speaks to those closest to the case, including investigating officer Sergeant Keshi Mabunda and Colonel Nthipe L Boloka, her station commander at Tembisa South police station – both of whom Ndlovu was accused of trying to assassinate from within prison.
Other interviewees include Ndlovu’s prosecutor, advocate Riana Williams, and Everson Luhanga, Scrolla Africa’s editor-at-large, who originally broke the story, as well as family members of both Ndlovu and Mabasa, their landlord, and her former school teacher.
The documentary, which premiers on the local streaming platform on June 14 with new episodes released every Thursday, is directed by IdeaCandy, the company behind the Safta-winning true-crime sensation “Devilsdorp”.
And while Mathibela has worked on several local productions, including the first season of “The Real Housewives of Durban” and “Lebo M - Coming Home”, she said that she jumped at the chance to be a part of this documentary.
“There was a loud outcry by the public for a documentary to be done while she was attending court under Judge Monama and I could relate with Rosemary’s background as a village girl, but there was a lot that raised my eyebrows that I wanted answers to.
“So when we met with IdeaCandy, I realised from the surface research in that first phase, how deep the story ran and the shock elements that came with every discovery linked to Rosemary, confirmed for me that this is one story I want to be involved with,” she said.
And what makes “Rosemary’s Hitlist” even more intriguing for its director was “definitely the destruction of family by one of their own.”
“What surprised me the most about this case was how quickly she struck when she decided it’s time and the different methods of killing on all her victims.
“Rosemary’s personality up-close and among her relatives from their encounters with her, had no sign of the level of brutality she is accused of, and it was amazing how such darkness can dwell in such a seemingly warm personality that understood power,” she said.
“Rosemary’s Hitlist” moves between New Forest Village in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, where Ndlovu grew up, and Tembisa, where she was paid to serve and protect.
Mathibela said that the landscape of the documentary is also a spectacle as it happens in three completely different sceneries.
“She manoeuvred across all three with the same pattern undetected; wearing a cop’s hat,” she said.
In order for Mathibela and her team to put “Rosemary’s Hitlist” together, they had to travel between three regions and gain the trust of Ndlovu’s family and colleagues and other parties who lend their voices to the production.
“A lot of conversations, travelling and earning the trust of families to divulge information that scared them at night.
“The other big player was forming solid relationships and earning the trust of the police and the prosecution to allow us to reveal the story details in ‘Rosemary’s Hitlist’,” she said.
But for Mathibela, “Rosemary’s Hitlist” is essentially a story of the victims.
“It is their encounter with the accused that we wanted to hear and how having a close relationship with her harmed their loved ones and scarred their lives. They speak on behalf of their deceased. There is no story without them,” she said.
Mathibela added that the agony brought on by Ndlovu is still so fresh in the lives of the victims.
“Witnessing the fear that some of them still live with, to an extent that they are still afraid to speak,” she said.
But the documentary’s director said that one of the most fulfilling aspects of working on this series was to give the victims the validation that their loss and pain is seen.
“They are heard and for some, the ability to “bhodla” (have an outlet after carrying their pain for so long/release/offload). There is hope for healing to begin,” she concluded.