Jack Buthelezi, a friend of accused number two in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial, made a shocking revelation at the Pretoria High Court on Tuesday testifying that the suspect, Bongani Ntanzi, admitted to killing the late soccer star with his friends.
Buthelezi recounted his interaction with the accused, stating that Ntanzi disclosed this information to him after his arrest.
According to Buthelezi, Ntanzi was visibly emotional during this conversation, telling the court that he even cried after he revealed the reason behind his arrest.
Buthelezi said, however, that Ntanzi did not disclose the names of his friends but said “abo Maphisa”.
He further revealed that he gave Ntanzi R500 after their conversation, and this marked the last time they communicated.
“He told [me that] he was arrested for possession of a firearm. He said they had killed Meyiwa. He and his friend, abo Maphisa. He said they were at a party.
“He said he was in the company of his friends. He said Maphisa and them. I then took out R500 and gave him and he turned around and started crying,” the court heard.
However, during cross-examination, Buthelezi altered his testimony, changing the purported confession into an allegation.
Asked by advocate Zandile Mshololo to clarify exactly what Ntanzi said, Buthelezi said Ntanzi told him that he was arrested because the police said he had killed Meyiwa.
“He said the police said he and his friends had killed Meyiwa,” he said.
Meyiwa was killed at the home of his then-girlfriend Kelly Khumalo in Vosloorus on October 26 2014.
Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Ntanzi, Mthobisi Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Sifisokuhle Ntuli are currently being tried for the murder of the late goalkeeper and have all tendered pleas of not guilty to charges of premeditated murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravated circumstances, possession of firearms without a licence, and possession of ammunition.
Mosia explains discrepancies
Prior to Buthelezi’s testimony on Tuesday, forensic officer Thabo Mosia, a crucial state witness in the trial, returned to the stand.
This marked his third appearance as a witness in the same case.
His initial testimony was delivered during the original trial, which was subsequently halted and restarted from scratch.
Following the trial’s fresh start, Mosia returned to provide his testimony anew.
However, the defence raised concerns about inconsistencies between his oral and documentary evidence, leading them to request his return for further investigation.
During his initial testimony, Mosia had detailed his role in collecting and processing evidence from the crime scene.
However, the defence questioned him extensively about the alleged failure to secure crucial evidence and the claim that the crime scene had been compromised.
One significant revelation during Mosia’s cross-examination was his admission that he left the Meyiwa murder scene to attend to two other crime scenes before returning to the Khumalo household where Meyiwa was shot and killed.
He told the court that he recorded his movements in a pocketbook.
During the proceedings, advocate Zithulele Nxumalo, representing Maphisa, pressed Mosia on the discrepancies between his courtroom testimony and the information recorded in his pocketbook, recently provided to the defence.
However, Mosia defended his testimony, explaining that he had to prepare without access to his pocketbook.
“I was on standby, and when I prepared evidence relating to this matter, I was on incapacity leave,” Mosia explained.
“I had to go to Springs to search for documents that would assist me in preparing my evidence.
“However, I found that the documents had already been booked out by the provincial crime scene management.
“I could not even find my pocketbook … and that actually affected the manner in which I was trying to prepare to come to court.”
Mosia emphasised that he relied on statements he had made before testifying and expressed uncertainty about the accuracy of the pocketbook entries, suggesting there may have been errors in the timing of his return to the crime scene.
Mshololo, representative for accused number five, asked Mosia about the absence of records for other crime scenes he claimed to have attended on the morning of October 27.
Mosia explained that entries in his pocketbook were typically made upon arrival and departure from a scene, leading to discrepancies in the timing of events.
“I see I thought I attended the two cases when I left the crime scene in Mzamo [Meyiwa murder scene] whereas I had attended them before,” Mosia admitted, adding that he was “guessing” regarding the timing due to lack of documents during his trial preparation.
As the cross-examination continued, Mosia faced additional scrutiny regarding discrepancies in his plan register and the exclusion of certain photographs from his working copy.
He attributed these discrepancies to exhaustion, given the demanding nature of being on standby as a crime scene investigator.
Despite the intense grilling from the defence, Mosia stood by his testimony, asserting that he believed the white cellphone found charging on the TV stand at the Khumalo household belonged to the individuals present in the house at the time of the murder.
The trial continues on Wednesday with a new witness.
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