The Senzo Meyiwa murder trial took a significant turn as Warrant Officer Elton Ndlovu testified about new evidence admitted by Pretoria High Court Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng on Tuesday morning.
The ruling allowed the state to present electronic devices, including a Samsung cellphone with an MTN SIM card, a Vodacom SIM card, and an SD memory card, all linked to the case.
Ndlovu, stationed at the Middelburg DPCI offices, explained that the cellphone was inaccessible due to a pattern lock.
Cellphone data inaccessible
“The owner of the cellphone sets it as security. That’s why I couldn’t download the cellphone because the owner of it was not present. The only person who can open that pattern is the owner who set it,” he told the court.
Under questioning from state prosecutor Advocate Ronnie Sibanda, Ndlovu clarified the nature of an SD card. He described it as a “small card or memory card which stores data”.
He added that he extracted data from the SD card and burnt it onto a CD, which was then sealed in a forensic bag.
“What I mean is that after I was done extracting the data, I placed it on the CD and put it in a forensic bag and sealed it,” Ndlovu said.
The court’s attention turned to a selfie of accused number two, Bongani Ntanzi, displayed on a screen, showing him with an O-shaped beard.
O-shaped beard
Sibanda referenced a prior court proceeding from August 2023, where Ntanzi’s defence, led by Advocate Sipho Ramosepele, claimed that Ntanzi never had an O-shaped beard.
Ndlovu disagreed.
“As I am observing during this time, this person took the picture; he had an O-shaped beard.”
The photo, Ndlovu added, was dated June 10, 2020.
The defence raised objections.
Ramosepele argued that the witness was called to introduce 16 photos related to Ntanzi, not to discuss cellphone data or beard descriptions.
Advocate Zandile Mshololo further objected, questioning the relevance of photos from 2020. This as Meyiwa’s murder occurred in 2014.
Focus on pictures
“We are being shown pictures taken in 2020. But we are supposed to be about the date of the incident,” Mshololo argued.
Sibanda asked Ndlovu about whether WhatsApp could be accessed on the locked phone, to which Ndlovu replied, “No”.
When advocate Charles Mnisi raised an objection, arguing that the state was seeking a personal opinion on the photo, Judge Mokgoatlheng overruled the objection.
“It’s not a personal opinion; it’s a photo,” the judge stated, allowing the testimony to proceed.
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