Longwe Twala, the son of famous music producer Sello “Chicco” Twala, shot and killed soccer star Senzo Meyiwa on the night of October 26, 2014.
This is according to advocate Thulani Mngomezulu, the lawyer for accused number one, Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial.
Mngomezulu said this during the cross-examination of state witness and ballistic expert Lt-Col Christian Mangena at the Pretoria High Court on Tuesday.
This was more than a year after the court heard Mangena’s evidence in chief.
Mngomezulu told Mangena that Longwe fatally wounded Meyiwa by shooting him with a 38 special revolver that belonged to his father.
Mangena said the gun, which he described as a 9mm parabellum semi-automatic pistol, was brought for ballistic testing.
Tests confirmed that it was not the firearm used to murder Meyiwa.
Evidence bags
Longwe was present when the then Bafana Bafana captain Meyiwa was shot and killed at the home of his then girlfriend, singer Kelly Khumalo, in Vosloorus east of Johannesburg.
The people who were in the house with Meyiwa were Kelly, her sister Zandile, their mother Gladness, Zandile’s boyfriend at the time Longwe, and Meyiwa’s close friends Tumelo Madlala and Mthokozisi Thwala.
During cross-examination, Mangena said on November 14, 2014, he received two sealed evidence bags from investigating officers.
The bags contained a 9mm parabellum semi-automatic pistol, two magazines, a firearm licence, a black holster, and six 9mm parabellum cartridges, he said.
Mngomezulu asked Mangena who the firearm licence and firearm belonged to. Mangena said he does not know who the owner is.
“Why was the firearm licence brought to you during the testing?” Asked Mngomezulu.
“Was the reason for bringing the firearm licence to prove that the firearm was legal, legitimate, or to prove ownership?
“Or was it to prove that the firearm was used during the commission of the crime?”
Answered Mangena: “The firearm was sent to be compared with the bullet. It was just to test if it was not the firearm used at the crime scene.”
Mngomezulu pressed hard: “My concern is the ownership of the firearm. I want the person who was the owner of the firearm. There was a firearm licence.”
In his response, Mangena said: “There was a licence with it [firearm]. I did not look at the licence. I did not look at the owner of the firearm.
“My concern was to compare the firearm with the bullet found at the scene, not to know who the owner of the firearm is.
“I received exhibits and firearms, and I do not know who the owners are.”
Chicco is the owner of the firearm
After a brief chat with state prosecutor, advocate George Baloyi, Mngomezulu said Baloyi told him that the owner of the firearm tested is Longwe’s father.
“I have verified the information that the licence of the firearm belonged to Chicco Twala,” said Mngomezulu.
But Mangena stood his ground: “I don’t know who the firearm owner is.
Mngomezulu probed further: “This one bothers me because Chicco was not at the crime scene when the crime was taking place. Why take his firearm when he was not at the crime scene?
“The firearm brought to you belonged legally to Chicco Twala. I will reserve this question to [lead investigator Brigadier Bongani] Gininda.”
Mangena insisted: “I don’t know who the firearm belonged to.”
Asked Mngomezulu: “But what can associate Chicco Twala with the testing of the firearm is the presence of Longwe at the crime scene when Senzo was shot. That is how they are linked.
“Chicco is the father to Longwe. There is a theory, which I will prove later, that Longwe is the one who fired a shot at Senzo Meyiwa. I just want to know.”
Mangena answered: “I cannot comment on that one. That is not the only firearm I received. I received other firearms as well, and all tested negative with the bullet.”
Mngomezulu did not budge: “I put it to you that the firearm that Longwe used to shoot Senzo was a 38 special revolver and not a 9mm.”
To which Mangena answered: “There was no evidence of a 38 special revolver or any revolver at the crime scene. The only evidence at the scene was a 9mm bullet recovered.”
Mangena testified in August last year that the gun found on accused number three, Mthobisi Prince Mncube, when he was arrested in 2015 for a separate matter, is the same one that killed Meyiwa.
