Advocate Zandile Mshololo Biography, Education, and Qualifications

Advocate Zandile Mshololo is a South African lawyer who attained national fame in early 2022 as a defense attorney of one of the five suspects in Senzo Meyiwa’s Murder trial.

Prior to the case being reopened in April 2022, Advocate Mshololo was relatively unknown in the country. She, however, sprung to the center stage following the broadcast of Meyiwa’s trial on national TV and other news channels. Her brilliant defense tactics made her stand out from other lawyers involved in the trial. Besides Meyiwa’s murder case, she has reportedly been involved in other high-profile cases.

What Is Advocate Zandile Mshololo’s Age?

Advocate Zandile Mshololo’s age is unknown, nevertheless, she is said to be presently in her late 40s. Hence, the adept lawyer is believed to have entered the world in the mid or late ’70s. Zandile’s mother, MaMshololo, was a close friend of the late Zulu Queen Regent, Mantfombi Shiyiwe kaSobhuza.

Advocate Zandile Mshololo reportedly has a twin sister, and Queen Mantfombi took them as her own daughters due to her relationship with their mother. Interestingly, Zandile and her sister accompanied the late Queen Regent to the Kingdom of Eswatini for gift collection when her daughter, Princess Ntandoyesizwe Tembe, got married.

Mshololo is a monster in court, takes no bullshit, if it wasn't for her I'll be behind bars today.

I owe this lady alot, she ripped through my ex and her family, exposed infidelity and extortion & blackmail. Ended 2 yrs of endless court battles.#mshololo#SenzoMeyiwatrial pic.twitter.com/WsV2tXwvUv

— Sandile (@Gog_Nomeva) June 13, 2022

Advocate Zandile Mshololo’s Education and Qualifications

Advocate Zandile Mshololo holds a law degree, but the university from which she obtained it is still not known. She is reportedly a member of the Society of Advocates of KwaZulu-Natal – Durban Bar. Having been raised in South Africa, it is believed that Zandile completed her basic education in the country.

How Advocate Zandile Mshololo Rose to Fame as a Defense Lawyer in Senzo Meyiwa’s Trial

In early 2022, Advocate Mshololo became part of the legal team involved in Senzo Meyiwa‘s murder case. She is the defense attorney for one of the five men accused of killing Senzo Meyiwa named Sifisokuhle Nkani Ntuli. After receiving the docket opened in January 2019, she asked for time to study the second docket, and hence, the trial was delayed.

The late Bafana Bafana goalkeeper, Senzo Meyiwa, was killed in a botched robbery at his then-girlfriend, Kelly Khumalo‘s house in Vosloorus, on the East Rand. Advocate Zandile Mshololo found out from the second docket that the director of public prosecutions (DPP) for South Gauteng wanted Kelly Khumalo and others present in the house at the time of the robbery to be charged with murder and defeating the ends of justice.

However, the DPP North Gauteng decided to charge the five men in the Pretoria high court with murder based on the docket opened the year Meyiwa was killed. Advocate Mshololo then questioned how the final decision was taken by the state and, thus, cross-examined state witnesses to prove that her client was not guilty of murder. It was during her cross-examinations that she won the hearts of South Africans, who seemed to be impressed with her defense tactics.

While cross-examining the state’s first witness, Sgt Thabo Mosia, on a statement he made on the second docket, Advocate Zandile Mshololo tried to prove to the judge that the crime scene Mosia attended to on the night Senzo was murdered had been contaminated. She questioned Mosia on why he didn’t investigate what had happened to the cellphones that were stolen from the witnesses on that night and also why he didn’t collect the crutch stick that one of the witnesses used to hit one of the suspects.

Zandile Mshololo then concluded that not only was the crime scene tampered but the evidence the forensic expert gathered was also compromised.

Advocate Zandile Mshololo and Zandie Khumalo’s Court Drama

With her client and four others facing charges of premeditated murder, attempted murder, possession of firearms without a license, robbery with aggravating circumstances, and illegal possession of ammunition, Advocate Zandile Mshololo has been bent on proving that Sifiso was wrongly charged and is determined to point out who the real culprits were. Hence, during her cross-examination of Kelly Khumalo’s sister, Zandie Khumalo, as a state witness, she argued with the songstress that Senzo was shot by those inside the house.

With Zandie testifying that she hid in the bathroom when she heard the first gunshot and remembered that her sister Kelly was in the kitchen with her boyfriend, Advocate Mshololo asserted that since Zandie Khumalo was in the bathroom, she couldn’t affirm whether one of the people around at the time of the robbery disarmed the suspect and shot Meyiwa.

Mshololo: I put it to you that accused 5 denies the allegations. He was never there. Do you have any comment on that?

Zandi: As I explained, I saw two people who entered the house. As to how he is involved, we can leave that to the police.#SABCnews #SenzoMeyiwatrial #SenzoMeyiwa

— Sipho King K Kekana (@KingKAzania) July 25, 2023

She further stretched the question by asking Zandie if she could be able to tell whether her sister disarmed the firearm from the suspect and shot the deceased since she ran into the bathroom and was not in the kitchen when the goalkeeper was shot. She also asserted that Kelly Khumalo wanted to eliminate Meyiwa at the time. During the cross-examination, Mshololo and Khumalo would, at some point, engage in an altercation, and the defense lawyer made it clear to the singer that she was not the one asking questions.

She later called Zandie’s testimony a fabrication, having felt that she was fabricating her evidence. Zandie Khumalo failed to give an accurate description of the clothes worn by the second suspect, and Advocate Zandile Mshololo explained that she was unable to do so because there was no second suspect, and she was fabricating her story. Additionally, Mshololo cross-examined other state witnesses, namely, Meyiwa’s friend, Tumelo Madlala and Khaya Ngcatshe.

Advocate Zandile Mshololo’s Ties With The Zulu Royal Family

In May 2023, Scrolla.Africa reported that Advocate Zandile Mshololo had been asked by the Zulu royal family to intervene in their legal woes. The advocate, who is a close friend of the family and late Queen Regent, Mantfombi, was said to be responsible for organizing the legal team that assisted the Queen in drafting the final will that nominated Misuzulu Zulu as the heir to the throne.

Also, she would assist the new legal team chosen by the Zulu King to represent himself and Buthelezi after he dumped Strauss Daly Inc., which was previously representing them. Advocate Zandile was tasked with convincing Buthelezi to sign the answering affidavits in the legal case challenging the ascension of Misuzulu to the throne.

Advocate Mshololo’s Husband

Advocate Zandile Mshololo has kept a low-key personal profile, and thus, her husband is yet to be known. Even though she indicated on her Instagram bio that she is a mother, she never shared pictures of her husband and children on the social media platform. Surprisingly, she only has a post of herself on her IG account.