By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The girlfriend of Mthobisi Mncube, one of the men linked to the murder of Senzo Meyiwa, told the Pretoria High Court that he did not deny owning the pistol that would link him to the crime upon his arrest.
Mncube is one of five men on trial for Meyiwa’s murder in October 2014.
Last week, State witness, Captain Blessing Mtshali, was the last witness on the stand with questions regarding the firearm linked to the murder of the soccer star at the centre of his testimony.
As the defence questions the validity of the ballistic results on the gun, it has requested that the police officer Thabo Mosia return to the dock.
During Mtshali’s testimony, it was found that the weapon in question had been booked out by another officer for safekeeping.
While the defence said the gun could have been tampered with in the time that it was in the hands of the other officer, Mtshali said it’s not uncommon for police to take evidence for safekeeping.
He said evidence gets stolen in storage and many officers resorted to keeping it with them so they can account should anything happen.
On Monday, the court heard testimony from Mncube’s former landlord and his girlfriend Kagiso Tefu.
While the State has established a link between four of the accused and the murder of Meyiwa through cellphone evidence – it has not been quite clear how Mncube was linked to the crime.
Despite evidence by the police officers who arrested Mncube in connection with the murder of a taxi boss and confiscated a gun, ammunition and his cellphone – his lawyer told the court that he would deny any links to the gun.
But Mncube’s then-girlfriend Tefu told the court that he did not distance himself from the gun at his arrest.
“They took that firearm and put it in the bag and before they could put it in there, they asked us do we know this firearm personally I replied by saying, I don’t know this firearm and then the accused person didn’t reply, he kept quiet.”
This week, the State will lead evidence from a ballistic expert who will provide the details about the gun found on top of Mncube’s wardrobe – the same gun the State believes killed Meyiwa.
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Video Courtesy of ENCA.