The Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court is set to hear further testimony from a key witness on Tuesday in the bail application of six suspects arrested for the murder of Kaizer Chiefs defender Luke Fleurs following a week of high drama.
Fleurs was shot and killed four weeks ago by two armed men during a hijacking at a filling station in Florida, Johannesburg.
Six suspects Ndumiso Ndura Moswane (26), Fernando Nando Sive (25), Nhlakanipho Dlamini (21), Franky Xaba (25), Maredi Mphahlele (36) and Thembinkosi Hlomikhawu (31) were arrested in connection with the murder.
They are facing charges of murder (common purpose), robbery with aggravating circumstances and defeating the ends of justice. The six, who are now applying for bail, were arrested in Slovoville three weeks ago.
Police said they believe the six suspects are part of a syndicate that is responsible for car hijackings in Gauteng. The search for more suspects is continuing.
Magistrate Delise Smith has ordered that investigating officer detective sergeant Nare Benedict Moloto, whose affidavit formed the basis of the state’s testimony this week, appear in court on Tuesday to provide further evidence. Smith postponed the matter to May 7 for Moloto to come and testify, and ordered the suspects remain in police custody.
The Chiefs defender’s father Theodore Fleurs said he has forgiven his son’s killers after attending their initial court appearance. He described his son as a special boy during a memorial service in his honour.
But this week the testimony of the mothers of two of the accused told of parents in troubled relationships with their sons.
The mother of Dlamini, Princess Dlamini, testified on Thursday that she had previously warned her son to stop associating himself with Hlomikhawu “because he commits crimes”.
Dlamini said weeks before Fleurs’ murder, she wanted to physically assault Hlomikhawu for associating himself with her son but was prevented from doing so by police.
During their bail application last week, the suspects denied they had murdered Fleurs. They also denied hijacking him of his car. They told the court that the state’s case against them is weak and therefore cannot link them to the crimes they are accused of committing.
State prosecutor Paseka Temeki said the state is opposing bail. Temeki outlined the reasons for opposing bail in an affidavit compiled by investigating officer Moloto.
Hlomikhawu’s lawyer, Shibu Molefe, asked his mother, Nosisi Hlomikhawu on Thursday to take the stand and testify on behalf of her son in support of his bail application. During cross-examination, Temeki asked Hlomikhawu if her son is a “problematic” child. She responded: “He is a problematic child who commits housebreakings.”
In his affidavit, Moloto stated that Hlomikhawu had a previous conviction of residential burglary in the 2011 case and had been sentenced to five years imprisonment. He was also found guilty of residential burglary for a 2014 case and sentenced to six years imprisonment, with four years suspended for five years, and he was declared unfit to possess a firearm. Moloto said the accused was also found guilty of malicious damage to property in 2014 and sentenced to two months’ imprisonment with the option to pay a R2 000 fine.
Hlomikhawu and his mother, who was seated in the court gallery, blew each other kisses.
